Specialist Potter
by Akela Victoire
Summary: When Harry finds himself in Magix after a moment of grief-fuelled rage over how Wizarding Britain has treated him, he tries to make the best of the new opportunities available to him. With magic of a different kind being revealed on Earth, he and Roxy must unite their worlds to fight against a common threat.
1. Chapter 1

This is a story I've been wishing to do for quite some time now. When I read Harry Potter/Winx Club crossovers, it's usually the Winx coming to Hogwarts, not Hogwartians going to Magix. So I wanted to do something different!

With the help of my wonderful Beta **_LoveLoveLovix_**, I was able to finally get this off the ground, so thank her too!

I hope you enjoy!

* * *

Fury.

That was all he felt right now.

It was all he _could _feel now.

Both Fury and Grief had been battling within him for the past few days, but fury had won out.

Sirius was gone. He was angry at himself for falling for Voldemort's tricks, but he was also angry at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore. He had been the cause, whether directly or indirectly of all the suffering he had undergone for the past fifteen years.

He stuffed his few good clothing items into his trunk and hunted around him for the books he was taking with him, as Hedwig sat in her cage, watching his every move.

Putting him with the Dursleys all those years ago, when he probably knew they'd never accept his "freakishness", never checking up on him during his miserable years there… Yeah, so much for Dumbledore being a bastion for the Light!

He threw in his good books, completely ignoring the Lockhart set he'd wasted his money on in his second year.

Once he was done, he grabbed Hedwig's cage and dragged his trunk behind him on the stairs, making sure to make as much noise as he could.

"BOY!"

And here comes the walrus of the house…

Harry leaned casually on the outside of the cupboard the Dursleys used to make him sleep in, not disturbed in the slightest by the shaking of the stairs.

"VERNON!" He yelled back.

"How dare you take that tone of voice with me, boy!" Vernon began to turn purple.

Even if he wanted to, Harry would _never _be able to turn that shade.

Vernon tried to swing a pudgy fist at him, but Harry blasted him back into the wall hard enough to leave an indentation.

"I'm leaving this house. I've had enough of you. All of you!" Harry glared at Petunia and Dudley, who had also been roused from their sleep.

And with that, he and his possessions went off into the dawn.

Sticking out his wand hand, he summoned the Knight Bus and waved off Stan's usual preamble, before finding a seat.

Just as the sun was coming up properly, he got off and made his way through the Leaky Cauldron and into Diagon Alley.

His first stop was Gringotts to see about the matter of his finances. They didn't care too much that Harry was planning on leaving the Wizarding World, as long as he left his money with them. After about an hour or so, his affairs were in order and he left with a Muggle style bank card that would work with any ATM and POS as well as Muggle cash and Wizarding money in his pockets.

His next stop was to get some supplies for Hedwig.

After stocking up there, his next stop was Flourish and Blotts, where he picked up some books on Occlumency, Potions (both of which he was sure would teach him more than Snape ever did!), Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts.

At around mid-morning when he was about to get some food supplies, he spotted Dumbledore and a few Order members striding up the street, straight towards him.

Good. The current occupants of Diagon Alley were about to get a good show.

"Why good morning, Harry. We've been looking all over for you…" Dumbledore said.

"Oh? You've just now discovered that I've been missing from Number 4, Privet Drive?" Harry asked coolly.

"You can't just take off like that, Harry. You had all of us worried. Ever since the spells I put around your residence let me know that you had left…" Dumbledore trailed off as he noticed Harry turning a more vibrant shade of red than Vernon could have ever pulled off in purple.

"_You…_ You had monitoring spells around that _hellhole _you left me in and never bothered to check in and see how I was doing?!" Harry spat.

"It was for your own good, Harry…" Dumbledore said in his best grandfatherly voice, which only served to infuriate him more.

"_Oh?_" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"For my own good was it? Was it for my own good that you abandoned me on my aunt and uncle's doorstep in the cold November air, with only a letter to explain what had happened to my parents? Was it for my own good that I had to sleep in a cramped cupboard under some stairs for ten years? That I never knew my heritage until Hagrid broke down a door to deliver my Hogwarts letter personally? Tell me this, Dumbledore. How many other things have you done that were _for my own good?_"

"Harry, you need the blood protection that the wards will provide!" Dumbledore tried to explain.

"Listen to Dumbledore, Harry. He knows what's best for you!" Mrs Weasley pitched in.

"Under no circumstances will I _ever_ go back to that hellhole." Harry snarled.

"But the blood wards…" Dumbledore started again.

"They won't protect me from my psychotic relatives who used to starve me and made me into their own personal house-elf!"

Quite a crowd had gathered to watch the confrontation eagerly.

"I must insist…" Dumbledore started, but Harry cut him off again.

"You can insist you way to Hell, Dumbledore. I'm sure Grindelwald will enjoy the company. Tell him I said hello while you're there won't you?"

Dumbledore stood there, stunned as the crowd began to chatter even more in their excitement.

"First year, you let a three-headed dog into the school to protect the Sorcerer's Stone. No enchantments whatsoever to prevent students from accidentally wandering into its little domain. What would you have done if Ron, Hermione and I had been made into dog food that night? And letting a professor possessed by everyone's favourite Dark Lord Voldemort teach? What kind of headmaster are you?"

Mr and Mrs Weasley actually let out a whimper at this.

"Do I need to even mention Lockhart, Ginny being possessed by Tommy boy's diary, giving a thirteen year old a time-turner, not noticing an illegal Animagus under your nose for several years, that bullshit Tri-Wizard tournament, your professor being impersonated by a crazy Death Eater, your ignoring me throughout last year, Umbitch and of course the antics of everyone's _favourite_ Potions Professor?" Harry turned to said Potions professor, who was seething.

"Harry, calm down. We only want what's best for you, surely you must understand that…" Lupin said kindly.

Harry calmed down slightly. "I trust you, Lupin. I believe that _you_ want the best for me. I do _not_ trust the esteemed _Headmaster, _however. That's why I'm leaving. I don't know where, I don't know if I'll ever come back, but I cannot be around the Wizarding World right now!"

The crowd around him gasped.

"Harry! You can't leave! Voldemort's back! Who's going to beat him?" Tonks asked.

"Don't know, don't care. I'm sure if you lot all stood together, you could do it." Harry shrugged.

"Come now, Harry. Stop this nonsense and let's go back to Privet Drive? I'm sure your relatives miss you, somewhere, deep down…" Dumbledore once again trailed off as Harry floated off the ground and his face started turning red again.

A voice from the deepest abyss of Hell resonated within Harry as he spoke.

"_**Number Four, Privet Dive was NEVER a real home to me! It is not my home now, and it never will be ever again!"**_

"Bu…"

"_**NO!"**_

The anger coming from Harry could be felt by everyone present as they began to back off, and rather quickly at that.

A couple of store windows shattered, Hedwig was hooting like a maniac and the magic radiating from him sent several of the witches and wizards there through the air, crashing roughly into the ground.

"Harry…" Dumbledore said, actually beginning to feel fear spread through him.

"_**SOD OFF, DUMBLEDORE!"**_

Dumbledore's eyes had lost their sparkle and were wide open.

"_**I refuse to be the Wizarding World's saviour! One minute, I'm the Boy-Who-Lived, the next, I'm the Boy-Who-Lied. What will it be next?"**_

Harry's fist was now clenched around his wand, which was spitting fire.

"_**I'm done with you people. I BLOODY WELL QUIT!"**_

A blinding red light knocked the few people still standing off their feet and when it cleared, no trace of Harry Potter or his possessions could be found.

* * *

When Harry opened his eyes, he found himself on a forest floor.

Standing up and brushing himself off, he ignored Hedwig's indignant hooting and took in his surroundings.

This was not the Forbidden Forest. That much was certain…

He could see the tops of buildings from where he stood.

"Well, girl. I don't think we're in Diagon Alley anymore…" Harry muttered as he began to walk.

It was another hour before he reached the edge of the forest and found himself in front of a giant, floating building.

He blinked.

"I guess I must have somehow transported myself to another magical community…" He mused.

He stood there for a few moments until a voice called out to him.

"You there! I think you're a bit too early! School doesn't start for six weeks!" A burly-looking brown-haired man walked up to him.

"Um, er… I'm not here to start school actually. I just kind of suddenly found myself in the middle of the forest behind us and made my way over here…" Harry said.

"Really now? What planet are you from? Perhaps our Headmaster can get you back home…"

Harry felt confused. "I'm from _Earth…?_"

"Earth? But their magic was drained ages ago and only started to return when the Winx Club and some Specialists I helped train freed the Earth fairies!"

Now Harry felt _really_ confused. "But's magic's always been on Earth…"

The man grew serious. "Perhaps you'd better speak with Headmaster Saladin."

He motioned for Harry to follow him, which he did.

* * *

"So you are telling me that there were hidden magical communities on Earth all this time?"

"You're telling me that there were other realms of existence where _everyone _is magical this whole time?"

Headmaster Saladin, as the old man with white hair as long as Dumbledore's but without a beard had introduced himself, was thinking and so was Harry, as Cordatorta, the large, muscular man, who'd brought him inside stood behind him.

Harry had just given the two men a very basic rundown of his life in Magical Britain and they had in turn explained to him briefly about Magix and its history.

"Well, it's obvious that you have no desire to go back there and from what you've told me, I'm not really inclined to send you back there. That is of course, if you don't wish to go back…"

"No! I'd rather stay here for now. _Anywhere else_ is better than being their puppet!" Harry exclaimed, thinking of Dumbledore especially.

"In that case, might I offer you a place here at Red Fountain? From what you've told me, I think you could make an _excellent_ warrior. We do focus more on non-magical means of combat here, but there are some magic classes that you may take. We do believe in teaching our students not to rely solely on magic as they might be placed in a situation that they can't use it." Saladin said.

"May I have time to consider? I mean, I'm just finding out there's other planets and realms out there with life that are purely magical and all…" Harry said after a minute of consideration.

"Fair enough. I can have someone escort you into town and help you sort out some accommodation for as long as you stay here." Saladin waved his staff and a few books and brochures about Red Fountain and the surrounding area appeared on his desk.

"Take these. I hope they prove informative."

Harry nodded as he stood up to take them and left with Cordatorta.

* * *

A few hours later, Harry was settled into a small hotel near the edge of Magix City that Saladin told him Red Fountain students liked to stay in when school wasn't in session, looking out the window in amazement.

These people had successfully combined magic and technology, both of the "Muggle" kind and technology that Harry was sure the Muggles had never even _heard_ of.

Like that teleporter that had beamed him and Cordatorta up into Red Fountain.

The floating energy discs that acted like elevators.

And the magic these people could perform! They didn't even need wands most of the time!

If he stayed, he could learn that kind of powerful wandless magic and learn how to fight without having to cast a single spell!

Plus of course, none of Britain's Wizarding sheep would be able to find him here. Certainly another plus in his book as he thought of Dumbledore and his bumbling Order of the Chickens trying to find him when he was in a place they didn't even know existed.

Professor Saladin wasn't trying to manipulate him as far as he could see. He'd just barely met him, yet he'd laid out the facts and options for him as best he could, unlike what Dumbledore had ever done. Of course, he couldn't fully trust the man yet since he'd just met him, but he'd gotten off to a decent start at least…

He had left Ron and Hermione behind, but they would have understood his need to leave, surely. He hoped they would forgive him. After all, they'd stood by his side for several years throughout his Hogwarts career, even though their friendship had its ups and downs, like any normal friendship he supposed. He would find a way to let them know he was okay eventually.

He'd explore the city further tomorrow. For now, he'd be fine enjoying this room that didn't look like it hailed from the Middle Ages…

* * *

The next day, Harry set off to explore Magix.

He'd gotten some of his Galleons converted into Magix dollars (gold is gold anywhere, after all…) and was going to find something to spend them on.

He was browsing through a clothing store in a mall that was bigger than Hogwarts when he heard some female voices behind him.

"Come on, Roxy! You've gotta have a new look for starting at Alfea!"

"But what if I _don't _want a new look? What's wrong with my look now?"

Harry turned around to see a girl with bright pink hair and long, blonde bangs being pulled along by a girl with fully blonde hair.

Somehow the blonde reminded Harry of Hermione in her tenacity, when she was in a bookstore or library, at least…

"Nothing! It suits you! But I want to school you in the fashions of the Magical Dimensions! If you think Earth has some good designs, wait until you see what's here!"

Yep, definitely the Hermione of fashion…

"I'm _fine,_ Stella!" Roxy insisted.

"And you'll be even better once I get you a new wardrobe. You stay put." Stella commanded.

Roxy put her head in her hands and sighed.

"I can help you evade her if you like." Harry offered, stepping closer once Stella was gone.

"You would do that? Goodness knows I'm regretting tagging along with her. I really should have listened to Bloom…" Roxy sighed.

"I have a friend like that at home, except with books instead of fashion. I know how it feels…" Harry nodded, slightly amused.

"Oh, _Roxy!_"

Stella's sing-song-y voice signalled her return.

"Quick, hide me!" Roxy squeaked, ducking behind him.

Just before Stella reappeared, Harry shoved Roxy into a clothes rack.

"Hey, where did she go?" Stella, with at least a dozen clothing items on her arm reappeared.

"That girl with the pink and blonde hair?" Harry asked.

"Yep!"

"She went that way." Harry thumbed over his shoulder, in the direction of the exit.

"Thanks. Roxy will have that makeover yet!" Stella cast a spell to make all the clothing fly back to their racks and walked briskly out the store.

Once Stella was gone, Harry helped Roxy out.

"Thanks. I owe you one." Roxy smiled gratefully.

"You won't owe me one if you introduce yourself properly to me." Harry smiled back.

"Sure. I'm Roxy." Roxy held out a hand.

"Harry." Harry shook it.

After Harry made his purchases in that store, he and Roxy strolled around the rest of the mall.

"Earth's last fairy, huh? Quite the title…" Harry commented.

"I know. I get people staring at me all the time now…" Roxy pouted.

"_I know exactly how that feels…"_ Harry thought.

"And since fairy magic has been revealed on Earth, I can never be anonymous there either…" Roxy sighed.

"There you are!"

"EEP!" Roxy ducked behind Harry as Stella reappeared out of seemingly nowhere.

"So _that's_ where you ran off to! You know, I guess I can't blame you. With a little help, this guy could be really hot…" Stella smirked.

Roxy and Harry both turned red.

"Stella! I just met him! All I really know about him is his name!" Roxy exclaimed.

"_Yeah…_ I'd better go…" Harry waved to Roxy as he hurried out of the mall.

"See you around?" Roxy called out.

"I hope so!" Harry called back as he disappeared from sight.

* * *

A blue-eyed young man with shaggy dark blonde hair under a navy blue hooded robe sat at a table in The Leaky Cauldron drinking a Butterbeer.

His eyes were weary and he kept his head down as he eyed the other patrons while he waited for those he was to meet with.

"Ron, he's not going to just come back after he made such a dramatic exit…" The door opened and in stepped Ron and Hermione, arguing once again.

"But he sent a message to us with Hedwig, telling us to meet him here! He wouldn't do that and then not just show up…" Ron argued. "It must be really important if he put all those charms on her to prevent her from being hurt or tracked!"

"But why take that risk?" Hermione asked.

The blonde got up and snuck up behind them.

"Well, I…"

"_Psst! It's me…" _

Ron and Hermione nearly jumped out of their skins and had their hands on their wands before their brains clicked, recognizing the voice.

"Harry, is it _really_ you?" Ron asked, but Hermione had her wand out and pointed at the unfamiliar face discreetly under her robes.

"How did you and Ron get into the Slytherin Common Room in our second year and why?" She asked quietly, maintaining a firm grip on her wand.

"Ron and I got in there during our second year using Polyjuice Potion that you brewed, taking the forms of Crabbe and Goyle in order to find out whether or not Malfoy was the Heir of Slytherin. He wasn't."

"He's the real thing." Hermione pocketed her wand and dragged the two boys in the alley itself.

"Harry, what happened to you? Why did you leave? Did you really tell Dumbledore to sod off?" Ron asked.

"Ssh! Not so loud, Ron! Call me Jason when we're around others!" Harry exclaimed as he drew down the hood.

"Sorry, Ha- I meant, Jason… I mean, what really happened to you? Everyone wants to know and a lot of us are worried sick!" Ron said. "Do you know how hard it was for us to persuade Mum to let us come here on our own?"

Hermione nodded. "When you just disappeared like that, it sparked a big panic! People were sure you walked right into Voldemort's hands or something!"

"No, I'm fine. I'm somewhere far, far away from Voldemort and his little pet Death Munchers…"

"Plus have you heard? A new type of magic was found in the States. Fairies. Not all of them are like what we thought after all…" Ron said.

"It's causing lots of ripples across the Wizarding World! The Muggles know magic exists now, though they don't exactly know about us…" Hermione exclaimed.

"Deliberating whether or not to reveal themselves as well, plus our problem with Voldemort here…" Ron trailed off.

"And Voldemort might try to take advantage of this new magic…" Harry shuddered.

"Exactly! So you have to come back! In the little while you've been gone, Voldemort's been causing pure chaos- well, more than usual! I mean, look around the Alley!" Hermione gestured around and it was only then that the changes had truly hit him.

It had started from even before he left, but now, the change was tremendously different from what it was before.

Several stores were boarded up and the few stores which remained open were covered in both wanted and missing posters.

Fortescue's was completely obliterated and Ollivander's wasn't much better off.

People walked together in groups, huddled together as if that fact would prevent Death Eaters from attacking them.

Mothers kept their children close to them, terrified that the worst could happen if they let them go.

The few Hogwarts students in the Alley at the moment moved quickly as they did their shopping, never stopping to have even the briefest of cheerful conversations with their friends.

The expressions on most people's face were all negative. Sadness, fear, anger…

The Alley had lost its usual brightness and cheer and it was blindingly obvious. No one could ever miss the dour mood that had fallen on Britain's premiere magical community.

"He's been doing massacres left, right and centre! Yesterday, he went to a Muggle primary school and completely slaughtered ever last man woman and child that was there!" Ron exclaimed.

Harry's stomach did a double flip.

"In… in that case, it's all the more reason for me not to come back. Hogwarts doesn't exactly provide the kind of training I'll need to defeat Voldemort, does it? I can go elsewhere and learn to fight. And I'll fight him when I'm damn well ready to, _not_ when the Wizarding World commands me to." Harry stood firm.

"Bu…" Hermione started, but Harry interrupted her.

"No buts, Hermione. My choice was made for me even before I was born because of that stupid prophesy. What I can do now is choose how to go about fulfilling that prophesy."

"Where in the world will take you and train you that Voldemort won't be able to get to?" Ron raised an eyebrow.

"Don't you worry about that, Ron. I will be fine. I may not care about the rest of the Wizarding World, but you guys… I'm doing this for me. For us. Not them." Harry muttered quietly.

Hermione looked like she wanted to cry as she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"We'll miss you something awful, Ha- _Jason…_"

Harry patted her back awkwardly as Ron spoke.

"Yeah mate. Take care of yourself, alright?" Ron and Harry shook hands.

"I will keep in touch." Harry smiled weakly and turned away, slipping into a nearby lane to Apparate to Magix.

* * *

"Well, Harry. Have you made your decision?" Saladin asked.

Sometime later, Harry and Professor Saladin sat together in the latter's office.

"Yes, Sir. I have. I want to attend Red Fountain." Harry said.

"Very well then. I will make the arrangements." Professor Saladin waved his hands and handed him a folder.

"Booklists, uniform requirements and other orientation material. As for your tuition fees, I believe we will be able to arrange a scholarship for you once we evaluate your Earth school records." Saladin smiled.

Harry nodded. "But what about everything? I mean, the kind of fairies here that revealed themselves on Earth, Voldemort… What if, I mean, what will happen when he finds out that Magix exists?"

"We're preparing for that, Harry. Some of the Magical governments on Earth have revealed themselves to Tir Nan Og and us in turn and are now looking to arrange diplomatic and trade links with us. Of course some of them also had a lot to say about the Boy-Who-Lived…"

Harry groaned.

"Don't worry about that here though. I think your fame on Earth would be rather overshadowed by the Winx Club and their doings…"

"_Right…_" Harry muttered.

"Anyway, off you go! The next school year starts in only a week after all!"


	2. Chapter 2

_**I dedicate this chapter to all the members of Underground Fanfictioners as today March 13th, 2013 is the 1st anniversary of the group!**_

* * *

The first day of school in Magix had finally arrived and Harry, having semi-adjusted to Magix was getting ready to start his first day at Red Fountain.

Via Hedwig, he kept contact with Ron and Hermione. Of course, she had been disguised every time she went to them plus she had a special collar fitted that would allow her to pass through the dimensions, but using the resources now available to him, he was working on a method of communication that would be easier and less detectable- a different version of the mirror Sirius had gifted him with. If only he had known what it was then…

He sighed, but shook any sadness tempting to consume him off. Now was not the time to mope.

Packing up his things and coaxing Hedwig into her cage, he did a double check of the room before leaving to get to Red Fountain. It certainly wouldn't do to be late.

* * *

When he arrived, he saw most of the older students already dressed in their uniforms and mulling about in the lobby so he hurried to the elevator which would drop him off on the floor that his dorm was on.

Glancing at his Red Fountain ID- a black card with the Red Fountain crest in the background with his name and picture on it and also acted as a key to certain areas of the school, his mind began wandering to Hogwarts and his friends who were still there.

They too would be getting ready to start school now. He wondered how things were with them. He hoped they were safe.

Shaking off worrisome thoughts, he finally stepped out of the elevator and found the dorm he would be sharing with his squad for this year.

He stood for a moment in the living room, taking it in.

The walls were all a grey colour and black wall-to-wall carpeting covered the floor. There were a few potted plants here and there, with some simple furniture arranged around the room.

"_Not bad for a paramilitary academy…"_ Harry thought.

He soon entered one of the two bedrooms and made his claim on one side of the room since none of his squad mates had arrived as yet.

He set Hedwig's cage on its stand near a window and was proceeding to make his bed when another roommate arrived.

A tall, lanky fellow who looked Asian in appearance appeared in the doorway.

"I see you've laid claim already. No matter. Plenty of room for my things still…"

He began pulling things out of what Harry assumed to be a bottomless suitcase and piled them onto a corner of his bed.

"I'm Aki of Electra. You?" He asked as he sorted through his things.

"Harry. From Earth."

Aki sat up straight. "Earth? Just like Princess Roxy?"

"_Yes._ Is this going to be a big deal when I'm here?" Harry half-sighed.

"It will if you go on about it, but I somehow don't think you're exactly the type who likes a lot of attention…"

Harry snorted. "Got that right…"

Minutes later, the other two young men who would be sharing the dorm arrived in unison. One had his navy-blue hair buzz-cut, brown eyes, a light brown skin tone and was slightly muscular.

The other had even more muscle mass and short, light blonde hair that hid his pale blue eyes slightly.

"So these are my squad mates, huh? You all don't look like a bad bunch…" Blond Guy shrugged.

"Thanks, I guess…" Harry said, unsure.

"No problem!" Blond Guy grinned.

Soon, all of them were in uniform and ready to go to their first assembly as Red Fountain students.

Harry swung on his cape and fastened it with a bright red cape pin as he stepped through the door, pushing any uncertainties he had to the back of his mind. He'd come this far, after all. Why stop now?

* * *

All Red Fountain students stood at attention as their Headmaster entered the auditorium, saluted and only took their seats when Saladin signalled that they could.

"Welcome, welcome, welcome to Red Fountain, students. For some of you, this is welcome again, for others; this is your first welcome. I hope you will learn all we have to teach you to the best of your ability and perhaps make a friend or two while here. Red Fountain School has a long, detailed history. A war-torn history where the school has been under siege multiple times. You can always read more about that in the library. But in all of those wars, no matter the damage it has caused us, we have _always_ managed to rise from the ashes."

The students clapped politely.

"Now, go to your classes and do your best! We are Red Fountain men! We accept nothing less!"

* * *

"Come on! Are you little boys or are you Specialists in training?"

Cordatorta was barking orders at them as they ran through an obstacle course during Harry's first class: General Fitness & Endurance.

It felt more brutal than Oliver Wood's Quidditch practices and that was saying something.

Still, he pushed through. Of course physical fitness would be important in a paramilitary school. Can't be sending out weak, unfit soldiers, now can we?

He leapt through a large, floating hoop after scaling a climbing wall and encountered a small stretch where two lines of robots faced each other firing harmless lasers.

Before he went through, he pictured the robots as Death Eaters firing curses. He had to avoid the _Crucios,_ _Avada Kedavras_ and all the other unpleasant/lethal curses they would throw.

Entering sideways, he weaved his way through adeptly, bending over backwards, ducking down and even doing a few backflips when necessary. From playing Quidditch to having to dodge actual curses, his flexibility and reaction times were impressive.

When he finished with that area, he noticed Cordatorta watching him and looking impressed.

"Okay, that's a wrap, men! Come over here and I'll give you a briefing of what I observed." Cordatorta waited for less than a minute as all of the vigorously exercised students, some looking on the brink of collapse, trotted over to him.

"First off, if you think that this first obstacle course was tough, then you have no business being at Red Fountain. The first part of being a good soldier is being fit. You will be placed in situations where your endurance will be tested to and beyond the max. If a little obstacle course like this has you in bad shape, there's no way you'd survive a war under the harshest conditions."

Harry was feeling very winded and ached slightly as he listened to these words, but he didn't think he felt as bad as some of his fellow students looked. Of everyone in the class, his blond roommate and the one with the navy blue hair looked the least worn out. Looking at their physiques, they'd apparently done much more exercise than this before coming to school here anyway…

"Remember that your physical fitness and general health are extremely important and are not to be disregarded easily. I expect you to use the gym in your free time to build on your endurance, eat well and get a decent night's sleep as much as you can. You might be able to now, but wait until you're in a situation that you cannot. Learn your lessons well and enjoy not having to be an actual combatant while you can. Class dismissed."

* * *

"Welcome to General Magic. I may be your Headmaster, but I am also mostly responsible for teaching this class to those few people that choose to attend this academy who can cast spells that would register you at wizard levels."

Professor Saladin paced up and down the class of about thirty students, including Harry. None of his roommates were present.

"When I am unavailable for classes, you will have Professor Armand Lexagos here in my place. He hails from a highly powerful magical family of all sorts of magical alignments and he and his wife Drina are also well known for their work in Runes." Saladin gestured to a dark skinned man sitting to a corner behind him with wavy black hair who waved casually in acknowledging his introduction.

"You will find that some teachers share classes in certain courses and some are the sole teachers of that course, but enough of that. First question: how many of you depend on a wand, staff or other object to channel all of your spells?"

Twenty five of the students, including Harry, raised their hands.

"How many of you can cast some minor spells without your magical object?"

The rest of the class raised their hands.

"Well, by the end of this year, we hope to fix that to some degree." Saladin said.

"Some of you may have been taught that a wand or staff is necessary to channel magic. This is not so. For example, I cast spells through my staff as a matter of preference but I can perform magic without it if need be. I will demonstrate."

Saladin tossed his staff to Professor Lexagos who caught it neatly.

He held his hands in front of himself and conjured up a comfy looking, black armchair which he sat casually in as Professor Lexagos tossed the staff back to him.

Surveying the students' varying expressions for a few moments, he then spoke again.

"You will be able to do this and so much more by the time you leave this school. Now, any questions before we get into the heart of today's lesson?"

* * *

Lord Voldemort reclined in his armchair in a concealed room at Malfoy Manor, petting his pet snake Nagini, who hissed happily at her master's touch.

It had been several weeks now since that Potter boy had disappeared in Diagon Alley.

The door in front of him creaked open and he sat up straighter.

"_You tell him!" _

"_No, you tell him!"_

"_But I don't want to!"_

"_You lost our duel! You get to tell him!"_

"_I __**knew**__ we should have played Wizard Chess instead!"_

Wormtail aka Peter Pettigrew came skidding in, holding a copy of the Daily Prophet closely to his chest and came to a stop just inches in front of the Dark Lord himself.

"My… _m-m-m-my_ Lord, you _m-m-might_ _w-want _to read this…" Wormtail handed Voldemort the paper, shaking all over.

Voldemort shook his head at his most pathetic follower and unfurled the paper, settling down to read.

_**Harry Potter Still Missing**_

_By Benjamin Whitlock_

Voldemort raised a ridge that barely passed for an eyebrow as he took in the article, which had a simple picture of the Potter boy in his school robes accompanying it.

"_Harry Potter, also known to us as the Boy-Who-Lived disappeared from Diagon Alley several weeks ago and still has not been found._

_This reporter was present at the event, which stunned all present. The Potter boy had an argument with Albus Dumbledore, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, Order of Merlin Recipient and current Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

_He accused him of not being truly interested in his welfare, placing him with abusive relatives, having substandard teachers at Hogwarts and simply turning a blind eye to troubles he might have had among other things._

_For further details and to see pensive memory photographs of the event, turn to page three…"_

"Wormtail…" Voldemort spoke calmly, but even this scatter-brained Death Eater could detect the danger in his voice as he approached cautiously.

"Y- y- yes, My Lord?" Wormtail whimpered.

"I take this to mean you have no new information on the Potter boy's whereabouts?" Voldemort said quietly, but even Wormtail could detect more danger in his tone than the Avada Kedavra curse.

"N- n- no, My-m-m-my Lord…" Wormtail stammered.

"CRUCIO! I TOLD YOU NOT TO SHOW YOUR FACE AGAIN UNTIL YOU HAVE MORE INFORMATION! CRUCIO!"

"_**AUGH!"**_

After a minute of Voldemort's favourite activity, he lifted the curse and sent Wormtail on his way.

"Now to get back to my plans. I do wish I didn't have such incompetent minions though…" The Dark Lord sighed, before reaching for a quill and some parchment on a small table next to his chair.

* * *

"Do any of you fancy a trip to Magix? I feel like doing a bit more exploring…" Harry asked, pulling on a black jacket and cap.

"I don't see why not. We can celebrate surviving the first day of school!" Aki got up to join him.

Navy blue hair, aka Lucas and Blond Guy aka Darian, as they had introduced themselves earlier, also decided to venture out and take the shuttle bus to Magix City.

When they got out, all of them found that they wanted to go to different stores so they all decided to split up and make their way back to school when they felt like it.

Harry found himself in a bookstore that he'd passed when he first arrived in Magix.

"Hello there! Welcome to Laurie's Books! How can I help you?" The perky female shop assistant asked.

"I'm just browsing, thanks."

"Okay, let me know if you need help!" She left him alone as he began to browse.

The metallic bookshelves extended to the ceiling and there were several search stands where you need only search for what you wanted and it would appear on a table next to the stand if you needed assistance.

Small platforms were also attached that would transport one to the higher shelves and back.

Harry was about to head to one of the search stands when he saw Roxy enter the store with a few other girls.

"We've been here before only once before, when we came to buy our books. I'm sure there's _something_ in here all of us would want to read…" One of the girls, who was pale-skinned with dark green hair to her shoulders and light blue eyes spoke. Another girl, obviously her twin, except her hair was in a bun, nodded.

"Well, if you girls say so…" Roxy looked up and spotted Harry.

"Hey there Harry!"

"Hello Roxy. How did you enjoy the first day of your classes?"

"They were pretty interesting. I'm glad I came here after all. Look, I'd like you to meet my roommates. The twins are Athena…" Roxy gestured to the twin with her hair down. "… and Anahita." She gestured to the twin with her hair in a bun.

"Rainer…" She gestured to a dark-skinned girl with wavy black hair just past her shoulders and brown eyes.

"…and Krystal." A girl with lilac-pink waist-length hair and light olive green eyes waved.

"Pleasure. So, what brings you to Magix?" He asked.

"Oh, the twins here wanted to come to the bookstore so the rest of us decided to tag along and see what we could find…" Roxy shrugged.

"I see." Harry nodded. "Well then, don't let me keep you. I will see you again…."

As he walked off, he heard the girls giggling behind him.

"You know, he's kinda cute, Roxy…"

"KRYSTAL!" He could hear Roxy exclaim indignantly.

Harry chuckled and shook his head as he walked away.

* * *

Harry was the first to return to Red Fountain and he stacked his new purchases on his desk.

Tossing an owl treat to Hedwig, he grabbed what he hadn't finished of his theory homework and sat down to try and finish it. It might have only been the first day, but they had already piled on the homework.

"_I imagine the homework load would be similar at Hogwarts now that they're doing NEWTS anyway. I almost want to go back now and visit them. ALMOST..._" Harry thought as he tackled Professor Saladin's essay on basic conjuring.

He was about halfway through when Aki entered the dorm.

"Wait, you're doing homework already? What are you, some sort of nerd?"

"Nope. Just a bloke that wishes not to get buried in homework that's due the next day. I learned my lesson well from a friend I had on Earth…" Harry said, thinking of Hermione. Looks like her influence rubbed off on him after all…

"I see. I guess that means I'd better get started on the Military History assignment we have. What class are you doing yours for now?"

"General Magic." Harry answered, not looking up from his work.

"Ah. Well I suppose I'd better get started on my work too…" Aki rummaged around in his desk for his papers and tackled his own homework.

* * *

The next day, Harry, his roommates and a few others in their year were having their first lesson on how to handle vehicles.

"As you can see, there are a wide variety of vehicles you will need to learn how to operate though after this year, you can specialize in the types you are best at." Cordatorta gestured to the wide array of vehicles behind him.

Harry blinked. Sure he had been in Magix for a few weeks, but he still hadn't gotten used to seeing civilian people with what basically amounted to flying cars (That weren't Ford Anglias!), far less the military style ones…

"You won't be taking a ride in any of these just yet, but you will be allowed to have a look at their structure and basic mechanics for now. We have a demonstration for you by the current Seniors…" Cordatorta gestured upwards.

Harry looked up to see several of the air vehicles being operated. He wasn't too familiar with the terms used to describe them yet, but he wasn't worried as he knew he'd learn them later.

* * *

It was already a week since Harry had started at Red Fountain and he found himself setting into life there quickly.

He didn't miss Hogwarts as badly as he thought he might have- though having Dumbledore and Snape there probably helped…

In fact, the only reason he felt he missed Hogwarts for was his friends there. Ron and Hermione might have had their ups and downs, but they were still his friends. Plus Neville, Ginny and Luna had proven themselves to be loyal friends to him.

They would understand his need to get away and get the best training he could at least…

Hedwig hooted and flew over to settle on his shoulder.

At least he could bring one friend with him… He smiled as he rubbed her head gently and fed her an owl treat.

He had made the right choice. He was sure of it. It might not have been an easy choice and it might not have even been a choice he ever expected to make, but it was the right choice nevertheless.

All he had to do was prove that he deserved it.


	3. Chapter 3

As Harry was in one of his Dragon Handling classes, he wondered if Charlie Weasley had ever experienced anything like this.

Probably not.

Seeing as there was the issue of Harry studying dragons not from Earth…

While there were of course, more ferocious looking dragons in Magix than the ones he was currently observing… These dragons might have looked tame for dragons, but they certainly didn't act like it as Cordatorta was currently demonstrating with the assistance of some senior students.

"Remember- these dragons might seem tame compared to others you've seen or heard about, but they can be just as ferocious, so you must be careful around them at all times whether you are using weaponry, magic or otherwise. They will work well with you in battle if they trust you or if you bond with them, but get on their bad side and I might have to send a few roasted or amputee students over to Magix Central Hospital. Any questions?"

Harry merely listened and took notes as questions and answers were given. He noticed that Lucas was also doing the same- something he tended to do quite a lot in all his classes.

"_Lucas would probably be a good fit for Ravenclaw…"_ he thought.

"Now, I will let you meet and mingle with the dragons in the stable, so heed my advice…" Cordatorta motioned for them to follow him into the dragon stables.

The dragons currently in this stable (as they were multiple stables on this level of the school) looked up at the group of freshman Specialists interestedly as they entered.

Harry thought of Hagrid as he observed his classmates interacting with the dragons and thought that his half-giant friend would have been in nirvana if he could ever see that there were more dragons in existence than he currently knew about.

Though judging by rumblings he heard in Magix and things he picked up from Ron and Hermione (still delivered by Hedwig, though with a few spells in place to help/disguise her as well as the contents), that might not be too far off…

He shook himself out of his thoughts and focused on the situation at hand as he approached a dragon in a stable near the back. This particular dragon had a slight golden tone to its cream-coloured scales, scarlet under its wings and scarlet tipped ears and tail. Even its eyes, Harry noticed as it looked up at him curiously, were a cross between brown and scarlet.

"Hello there, girl…" He spoke firmly, yet gently as he approached, taking heed of Cordatorta's advice and remembering certain classes with Hagrid.

The dragon simply continued to look at him curiously, not changing its expression or position in even in the slightest way.

"You're a beauty, aren't you? And pretty calm compared to a certain Hungarian Horntail…" Harry felt more confident around this dragon since it was within a highly controlled environment and he'd actually been given good advice on interacting with dragons beforehand this time…

The dragon made a noise and raised its head, looking at him with a (was Harry imagining it?) pleased sort of expression on its face, apparently understanding the compliment he paid it.

Harry chuckled in amusement and moved forward.

The dragon stood up and flexed its wings slightly, showing no signs of hostility towards him unlike some of his other classmates who were currently dodging bursts of flame and snapping jaws…

Harry tensed slightly as he reached out to touch the dragon's head.

The dragon rumbled contentedly as he scratched behind his giant areas.

Hm. If he had known that dragons could be like this, he might have grown as batty about them as Hagrid was…

"Well, it looks like she actually likes you…" Cordatorta commented, walking over. "She never seems to like any students really…"

Harry turned to face his instructor.

"What do you mean by that, sir?" Harry asked, petting the dragon's snout idly.

"This particular dragon has never taken favourably to any student before. Normally she only lets me or other experienced dragon handlers near her but you… you are an exception Harry…"

"Oh joy. Two outcasts bonding together, huh?" Harry asked sarcastically.

"Who knows what it is? The point is that she's finally found a student she wants to work with and that student is you…" Cordatorta walked away to check on more students.

Harry and the dragon looked at one another.

"Well, we're quite the odd couple, aren't we…?" Harry asked and the dragon seemed to snort in agreement.

* * *

Somewhere else in the Magical Dimension, three infamous witches sat in separate magically reinforced cells on the same level of a maximum security prison. They watched idly as the guards with their magically charged weapons paced up and down the corridor, stopping every once in a while to glance at the prisoners.

Of course, Icy, Darcy and Stormy were not the slightest bit happy about their current situation and the youngest of the trio was currently making her feelings known loudly, clearly and violently.

"ARUGH! I HATE THIS PLACE! I HATE THIS PLACE! I HATE THIS PLACE! I HATE IT, I HATE IT, I HATE IT!" she screamed, banging at the energy barrier in the front of her cell.

"STORMY, CALM THE HELL DOWN! YOU'RE GIVING ME A HEADACHE!" Darcy screamed back.

Icy sighed, reading the newspapers stacked in a corner of her cell. She and her coven sisters had been imprisoned for two straight years and the monotony had grown even more boring by the day for the ice witch.

Ever since they had that alliance with Valtor, they had been contained at that maximum security prison on one of the most tightly guarded floors and all in separate cells at considerable distances from each other, so being able to hear Darcy and Stormy from where she sat was an incredible feat.

She flicked aside the last paper, which had a picture of the Winx Club alongside Roxy on the cover and sighed angrily.

These pesky Winx_ always _had to go off and save the day. Always getting in the way of her plans. And she had to suffer humiliating defeats at their hands every single time.

She didn't regret anything she had done in the slightest. They all deserved the pain and suffering she had caused.

She had fallen from being a powerful witch to being imprisoned in a high security prison for two straight years with a power nullifying bracelet on her arm at all times that she could not get off no matter how hard she tried.

"_I have to get out of here and take my sisters with me. I simply can't take this place much longer…"_ She thought, picking up another newspaper and taking in the headline with renewed interest.

So… Aside from these goody-goody Winx freeing these Earth Fairies, there was another kind of magic hidden on Earth all this time?

Interesting…

Now if only she, Darcy and Stormy were free to take advantage of that…

* * *

Harry sat up in his bed, reading one of the Potions books he had purchased in Diagon Alley on the day he had run away from Privet Drive, something he never thought he would find himself doing. However, it turned out that some of the Hogwarts books had been relevant to some of his courses at Red Fountain so far. Plus Potions classes turned out to actually be rather interesting when Snape wasn't teaching them…

He was currently studying a recipe for Felix Felicis when Aki came bursting in, dressed in full uniform.

"Aki, what are you doing in uniform? It's Saturday, we don't have classes…" Harry asked puzzled, glancing up from his book.

Aki gave him a look reminiscent of McGonagall if he had told her he forgot to do his Transfiguration homework.

"Man, you are hopeless. You know you're hopeless, right Harry?" Aki shook his head.

"Quit telling me I'm hopeless and answer the bloody question I asked…" Harry narrowed his eyes.

"I guess you're not going over to Cloud Tower for that inter-school dance with them and Alfea…"

Harry bolted out of bed suddenly. "Wait, that was _today?_"

Darian walked into the room chuckling and with his cape in hand, getting ready to fasten it.

"Yes, Harry. It is today, so if you want to go, I'd suggest getting ready to suit up…"

Harry dropped the book he had been reading and bolted off into the direction of the bathroom.

In less than twenty minutes, Harry was suited up and ready to join his roommates and others, who were currently boarding flying ships destined for Cloud Tower School for Witches.

* * *

Roxy, who was currently dressed in a simple spaghetti strap, knee-length light green dress, matching heels, elbow-length white gloves and her hair pulled into a high ponytail with a white bow, looked around at Cloud Tower's courtyard as her roommates and others from her school did the same.

With many horror tales about here floating around, she had been more than a little apprehensive about attending. Then again, most of those tales came from Stella and tales from Stella tended to be a little… _embellished._

"So this is the infamous Cloud Tower School. Not that bad, the way you hear the tales told by the seniors…" Krystal remarked, wearing a high-necked, thigh-length pink dress with a dark green bow around her waist tied at the back, dark green heels and her hair tightly curled and held back by a ring of white flowers.

"My older sister Nephele is a senior witch here and she says it's not too bad…" Rainer added, wearing a dark purple long-sleeved thigh-length dress with black lace around the hem and edges of the sleeves and black stilettos.

"I would hope not, sister dear…" A taller, slightly older girl that bore a slight resemblance to Rainer walked up to her, flicking her navy blue braided hair that covered her hazel eyes slightly.

Athena, who was wearing a bustier mermaid style strapless dark blue dress and Anahita, who was wearing the same dress except in cream glanced at one another, then at the buffet table and walked briskly towards it.

This left Roxy by herself, standing near the entranceway and feeling rather awkward just standing there.

"Do you plan to stay there all night, Roxy?"

Roxy turned around to see Harry there, looking rather handsome in his full Red Fountain uniform.

"Not anymore if you're willing to hang around with me…" Roxy smiled.

The two of them strolled around, taking in their surroundings and talking.

"How's Alfea going for you then?" Harry asked.

"Pretty great. I actually love it there despite the fact that because I am Morgana's daughter, people think that I must be some sort of prodigy. Apparently while studying at a fairy school back on Earth, she did an exchange at Alfea…"

Harry nodded in sympathy. "I know the feeling. Since Magix knows about Wizarding communities on Earth now, I suppose I can talk about my past there a bit more freely, at least with you. I went to a Wizarding school in Britain called Hogwarts and my parents were prodigies in their own ways by all accounts. I was expected to follow on and continue the Potter legacy- at least at first…"

Roxy frowned slightly, Harry's choice of wording having set off certain bells in her head.

"_By all accounts?_ Didn't your parents tell you anything about their school days? Mine do any chance they get!"

"My parents are dead. Have been for fifteen years since I was only a year old. Evil megalomaniac wizard killed them before turning his wand on me. That's how I got this… Harry swept aside his bangs, displaying his scar.

Roxy blinked, stunned. "Wow. I'm sorry. I really don't know what to say to that…"

"Then don't say anything more about that. Let's try to enjoy ourselves tonight…" Harry suggested.

"Agreed. So… do you have any pets?" Roxy asked.

"I have a beautiful snowy owl named Hedwig. I go her as a birthday present when I turned eleven. She's quite the character. You'd have to meet her to understand, but here's a photograph…" Harry pulled out the cell phone he had bought recently in Magix and pressed a button.

Roxy cooed in admiration of the snowy owl as Harry went through the pictures projected above the device.

"She is really beautiful." Roxy smiled. "I have a dog and his name is Artu. He's been with me for so long…" She showed off her own pictures of her faithful friend.

"I don't have that many positive experiences with dogs really…" Harry told her an edited tale of Aunt Marge and Ripper.

"I would never encourage Artu to do something like that- not that he'd want to!" Roxy exclaimed. "You'll have to meet him sometime and have a chat!"

"How exactly does one have a chat with an animal who can't talk?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"I'm the Fairy of Animals, remember? Giving animals the gift of human speech is within my capabilities!"

Harry paused, thinking of what Hedwig might sound like and what she'd say if she could.

"Wait… you're imagining Hedwig being able to talk, aren't you?" Roxy asked amusedly.

"Yes. With her personality, I can imagine quite a lot she'd have to say…" Harry chuckled.

Roxy laughed as well. "Maybe then we should meet each other's pets!"

"Whenever on a weekend, I'll be available for that!" Harry laughed.

Music started playing and Harry could see people getting ready to dance.

"I… don't suppose you want to dance, do you?" Harry asked nervously.

"Sorry, Harry. I don't really dance…"

"Thank goodness! Neither do I!" Harry exclaimed.

They both laughed as they went to the buffet area and began to serve themselves.

Once seated, they looked around to see Nephele and Rainer sitting together at another table, Aki dancing with Athena, Darian dancing with Krystal and Lucas talking to a few other Specialists.

"So… What do we talk about now?" Harry asked.

"I don't know… I suppose I could tell you about Tir Nan Og a bit if you like…" Roxy trailed off as she saw some of the students who had been outside running in, screaming.

"Or perhaps not…" Harry thumbed his wand, which was in his waist band.

"There's a giant monster out in the courtyard!" A random female screamed.

"Why do I get the feeling that I know who was responsible for that?" Two older witches, seated at a table next to them, groaned in unison. "Come on, Rajani, let's go find Nephele…" One of them, with long, mid-back length light brown hair with black streaks in a low ponytail, grey eyes and pale skin with freckles spoke, looking at the other witch with her hair in a thick, waist-length dark purple braid with a side fringe at the front, hazel eyes and olive skin.

Athena, Anahita, Rainer and Krystal ran over to their table a few minutes later.

"Some sophomores were experimenting with Creature Summoning outside! Nephele's roommates told us!" Rainer exclaimed.

"Is there any way we can help?" Harry asked, clutching his wand tightly.

"The teachers are already on it as well as some of the more powerful older students! Nephele and her roommates were already called out!" Rainer exclaimed.

There was a loud boom and several person shaped holes appeared in the walls as several figures trying to bring the creature under control were thrown through.

"We tried to get rid of the thing, but it ended up multiplying instead!" Rajani groaned from the ground.

Rajani's complaint was proven true to them all when several of the creatures entered, reminding Harry of what black, muscular, Blast-Ended Skrewts who were six feet tall would look like.

"Bloody hell…" Harry's eyes widened in shock.

"Come on girls! We've got to help get rid of these party crashers!" Roxy exclaimed.

"Right!"

Harry shielded his eyes from the five bright lights in front of him that joined several others.

When they cleared, Roxy and her roommates were all in their fairy forms.

Krystal wore a maroon sweetheart neckline mini-dress with an alternating white and green layered hem, white, strappy heels and her hair was up in a high ponytail with two curls left loose, framing her face. Her wings were a transparent light green and shaped like leaves.

Rainer wore a lilac strapless, knee-length pleated dress with a silver scarf around her neck, silver wrist-length gloves and silver ballet flats. A silver headband held back her usual hairstyle and transparent, tear-shaped wings sprouted from her back.

Athena wore a high-waisted, form-fitting black overalls, a dark purple wrist-length shirt, black knee-high combat boots on her feet and her hair was in two high ponytails.

Anahita wore a white, short-sleeved ruffled blouse with black around the edges of the sleeves, a black pleated knee-length skirt, black open-toed ankle boots and her hair was pulled into a chignon. Both twins had transparent, equilateral-triangle shaped wings.

Harry had never actually seen a fairy transform right in front of him before, but the sight was an amazing one in his opinion. His gaze lingered on Roxy's fairy from for a little longer than natural, but he shook it off.

More important things to deal with right now.

As Roxy flew forward, he hit a monster to his right with a Reducto and kept repeating the process with about four others that approached him.

"WOLF'S CLAW!" Roxy swept a hand and destroyed a few of the monsters in her path.

"Nice shot, Roxy!"

"Thanks, Harry!"

Despite not knowing each other particularly well, the two Earthlings worked well together, the monsters never even getting a chance to touch either one of them, unlike several others who were fighting back or merely trying to defend themselves.

All the teachers present gathered together, deciding that enough was enough and converged their powers, sending a blinding light all across the grounds, which knocked several people to their feet.

When the light cleared however, all the monsters were gone.

Harry groaned from his spot on the ground. "Couldn't they have done that from before?" He asked exasperatedly.

"I know, right?" Roxy face-palmed.

"I don't know about you all, but I'm ready to go back to school…" Rainer called out and several others around her called out in agreement.

"Oh don't worry, sis. Something like this always happens at our dances…" Nephele walked over to help her fairy sister up.

"Glad to know. I'll be sure to avoid them in the future…" Krystal muttered.

"I'm with you on that…" Harry agreed.

* * *

**Next Chapter: **_Visiting Earth again and catching up with what happening in Britain's Wizarding World._


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey Ron, look at this!" Hermione sat next to Ron at breakfast in the Great Hall.

"Why'd you want me to read a Muggle- oh…" Ron's mouth fell open and a bit of sausage fell out- which Ginny and Hermione both made expressions of disgust at.

"Fairies? But these women with wings don't look anything like fairies!" Ron gestured to the full colour photo of Nebula, Morgana and Roxy standing together in their fairy forms on the front of a Muggle newspaper.

"Oh, you're talking about those "fairy" women that revealed themselves to the world across the pond, eh? Me mam sometimes buys Muggle newspapers. Needless to say that she's been buying them a whole lot more recently…" Seamus piled scrambled eggs onto his plate.

"Not just across the pond. They say they have a magically hidden island of their own called Tir Nan Og that's off the coast of your home country!" Dean said to the Irishman sitting next to him.

"Ron, why are you acting like you haven't heard of them before? We talked about it with…" Hermione trailed off as she remembered that she and Ron were not alone.

"Oh. Yeah. Still, why are you showing me this?" Ron reached for a pitcher of pumpkin juice.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "They're giving more information on their type of magic now and personally, I think it's fascinating…"

"I don't even follow Muggle news that much and I agree…" Katie spread jam on her toast.

"But they're not Muggles obviously. They're a new kind of magic- or new to us anyway since they say they've been existence for thousands of years…" Hermione said.

"_Other realms? How is that even possible?"_

At the Ravenclaw table, the debate was on. Cho gestured to the newspaper as she asked.

"Quite possible according to them. I personally would love to learn more about it." Terry Boot said and most of the table nodded in agreement.

"They need to hurry up and write some books about their culture, their types of magic and these "other realms". I want to read all about it!" Anthony Goldstein bit into his toast.

"Back to my question! How is it even possible for other realms to exist?!" Cho exclaimed.

"It's just another type of magic we can study. Not like ours for sure but just because we do not quite understand it doesn't mean that it can't exist, Cho…" Michael Corner sipped his tea calmly.

"We can Apparate to other parts of the country, other parts of the world, yes. But to another world? How? How the bloody hell is that even possible?" Cho said.

"It must have been what your ex-boyfriend did after that confrontation in Diagon Alley back in mid-July since no one's seen him since…" One brown-haired girl sitting next to Cho went back to her porridge; completely ignoring the glare Cho was giving her and the laughter from those who heard her comment.

The Hufflepuffs were having their own discussion at their table.

"I tell you! This is some sort of trick by the American Muggles or maybe even their Department of Magic!" Ernie MacMillan banged his fist on the table, almost spilling his porridge.

"Oh, hush up, Ernie. You were the same one who thought Potter was the Heir of Slytherin back in our second year…" Hannah Abbott rolled her eyes as she cut up her bacon and eggs.

"With good reason! He was a Parslemouth and he was always found near the scenes of attacks! Besides, it' wasn't only me who thought so!"

"But he _wasn't,_ Ernie. In fact, I apologized to Potter as soon as I could after I recovered from being Petrified. Now enough about Potter. We were talking about this new magic found out there in America…" Justin Finch-Fletchley ignored Ernie's reddening complexion.

"It's not a trick. Auntie's been in contact with Lawrence Rodman- the American head of Magical Law Enforcement and he's been saying it's the real thing this whole time. He hasn't met with this Queen Nebula person yet, but he has met with some other fairies from Tir Nan Og…" Susan said.

"Oh?" Zacharias Smith raised an eyebrow. "How come that news isn't in the Daily Prophet yet?"

Susan rolled her eyes. "Well, it's not like they can randomly go off and interview Heads of Magical Law Enforcement, can they? Besides my aunt said- and she said that I was free to tell you all this- that there's going to be an interview in a Special Edition of the Daily Prophet in a few days with the Fairy Queen Nebula herself!"

Several people at the table dropped their forks and knives in shock.

"REALLY?" Hannah's eyes widened.

"Oh yes! I'm not quite sure how it came about myself, but two Daily Prophet reporters got the chance to interview her! I would subscribe to the Daily Prophet as soon as I could if I weren't already a subscriber!" Susan resumed eating, leaving the table excited about this new bit of information which no doubt would be all over the school before breakfast even ended.

"Who wants to take bets that Potter somehow got to this "Magix" realm?"Blaise Zabini chortled as he read that day's Daily Prophet.

"Wouldn't put it past him. Potter's always breaking the rules and getting away with it…" Pansy Parkinson drank her glass of orange juice.

Like the rest of the school, the Slytherins were also interested in the news that more types of magic existed than the kinds they knew.

Draco Malfoy said nothing as he listened to his fellow Slytherins discuss the topic at hand.

Munching idly on some toast, he read the Daily Prophet thoroughly. Unless there was some sort of attack by the Dark Lord and his followers or a claimed sighting of Potter, the Prophet seemed obsessed with this "new magic" as was the rest of the Wizarding World these days…

"I hear they have a different kind of witch too. Witches that don't need wands like we do…" Daphne Greengrass passed a copy of Witch Weekly over to Pansy, who shared it with Millicent Bulstrode.

"So the girlie magazines are covering it too?" Zabini asked in surprise.

"Oh yes. How could they not? They carry articles about it now and this week's article is about a trio of witches from the Realm of Magix called the Trix. Apparently in their world, they rank near to the likes of Grindelwald and the Dark Lord now!" Pansy said.

"Oh?" Draco sat up and now began to pay attention. This _could _be some useful information for the Dark Lord…

"Paying attention now, aren't we, Draco…" Daphne said, sounding suspicious.

"Never mind me, read the article! All I keep hearing about are those freaks with wings…" Draco said.

Daphne's younger sister Astoria spoke up. "They say that the Trix almost took over the Realm of Magix and wreaked total havoc in it with some magic called "the Dragon's Flame" that is supposed to be the most powerful kind of magic they know! They stole it-"

"Wait… they _stole_ magic?" Draco's eyes widened.

Astoria glared at him for interrupting her. "Yes, they _stole_ it from a Princess Bloom of Domimo- a fairy by the way- who was its rightful keeper…"

Daphne nodded. "Yes. Apparently in their realm and with their type of magic, they can steal, give, strengthen, weaken and otherwise manipulate a person's magic. Scary stuff, isn't it?"

"And the year after that, they joined up with some shadow phoenix guy-"

"Then some wizard named Valtor- who also didn't need a wand…"

"Let's not forget the article they did on the witch Mandragora. Witch Weekly mentioned the Trix there too, but only went into detail on them in this issue…"

Draco tuned out after he heard that these witches who didn't need wands could actually steal magic and cast spells that he could only dream of.

He resolved to tell his mother to order a copy of Witch Weekly and show that particular article to the Dark Lord, just in case he was interested in recruiting a few new Death Eaters…

* * *

Even the teachers themselves were caught up in the talk about Tir Nan Og, the Realm of Magix and all that came with them.

After class that day, they had all gathered in the staffroom to a meeting that Dumbledore had called.

"So everything is going okay in school still?" Dumbledore asked.

"Everything is fine except for the fact that Potter is still missing and has been for roughly four months now… Fine indeed!" McGonagall said dryly.

"I see nothing wrong with that. If Potter wants to drop out of school, let him. Teaching that boy anything would be like trying to teach a rock…" Snape said in his usual monotone.

Professor Flitwick cut them off before an argument between the two could break out (again).

"I did not call you all here to speak about Harry Potter or where he might be. I want to know what is happening within this school…" Dumbledore frowned.

"If you had shown so much concern even a few months ago, Potter would not have left, but anyway…" McGonagall proceeded to give a general overview of her own classes.

Each teacher then proceeded to do the same and some discussions and arguments were had.

Once that was done, discussion turned to the topic of Tir Nan Og and the Realm of Magix.

"They change the rules of magic as we know it!" Professor Sinistra exclaimed.

"Not necessarily. None of them have our kind of magic. They're just introducing a new kind is all." Professor Flitwick said and many others also agreed with him.

"They also say that their kind of magic might manifest in women and girls all around the world!" Professor Vector said.

"So we might be seeing more of what they call fairies then?" asked Professor Sprout.

"It seems that way…" McGonagall answered. "Plus their magic works differently to ours so they would be detected differently to how Hogwarts does it for potential students…"

"This new kind of magic should be monitored. They could present a threat to us. Suppose they revealed our existence as well? That could be… disastrous…" Snape droned.

"They will not. My contacts in the Ministry have been keeping in contact with the American Department of Magic. They've been in contact with the… _Queendom _of Tir Nan Og since their princess was actually born in America…" Dumbledore said.

"I'm amazed you still have any contacts anywhere at all since you practically chased the Boy Who Lived out of the country…" McGonagall said flatly.

"I did not chase him out of the country, Minerva. I did my best to persuade him to stay…"

"He probably would have if you hadn't left him with the Dursleys all those years ago like I warned you against doing…" McGonagall's glare unnerved even Dumbledore- even though he would never admit it…

"The blood protection…"

"Enough about the bloody blood protection! It obviously didn't work since He Who Must Not Be Named was able to harm him in some way almost every year since he came to Hogwarts! I don't blame him for leaving in the slightest. In fact, the only reason you still have any power at all in our world is because it is said that He Who Must Not Be Named was only ever afraid of you. The Wizarding World may be fickle at times and downright stupid and they are only distracted now by this Tir Nan Og business, but they will certainly never forget about Harry Potter, especially at a time like this when we need him the most!"

"I will have respe…"

"You want _respect _from me? Respect is not automatic, Dumbledore. It is _earned._ You used to have it, but until you finally admit your mistakes, you have it no longer!" McGonagall turned on her heel and left the room, leaving many shocked expressions behind her.

* * *

"Welcome to my beautiful land of Tir Nan Og, Ms Humphries and Mr Whitlock…"

Nebula chuckled at the expressions of the two stunned British Wizarding reporters.

Eliza Humphries, a petite young woman with black hair in a ponytail had her blue eyes opened wide while Benjamin Whitlock, a tall, older man with curly light brown hair not only had his hazel eyes wide open, but his mouth as well.  
"You may wish to take some pictures here if you like before we commence the interview…" Nebula suggested.

"Oh… Oh yes, Your Majesty!" Eliza Humphries fumbled for her camera while Benjamin Whitlock scrambled for a notepad and pen.

Nebula's wings flapped slightly as she spoke about her Queendom's environment, taking them on a tour of a garden of plants that neither Briton had ever seen either in the Muggle or the Wizarding Worlds.

"That is it for here. I shall take you to the palace now…" Nebula clapped her hands and energy discs formed beneath the feet of the two awe-struck reporters.

"This place is bloody amazing!" Eliza exclaimed as she made her camera float alongside the fairy queen, who was flying on her own wings.

Nebula chuckled. "It is, isn't it?"

Soon, they reached the sky entrance of the palace and Eliza summoned the camera back to her.

"May I?" She asked, gesturing to the large door with a pair of armed fairy guards on either side.

Nebula inclined her head. "You may."

They took pictured and made notes accordingly.

The guards bowed to their queen as one as she used effortless wandless magic to open the doors.

As they entered, the witch and wizard were once again stunned, this time by the beauty of the design of the palace of Tir Nan Og.

"Ever since we were freed, we took the liberty of doing some more light-hearted, whimsical decoration…" Nebula explained.

She led them into the throne room where several fairy guards stood on either side of the throne itself and bowed to their queen as soon as she entered.

Nebula flew up to sit on the throne and allowed them to take a few pictures of the throne room, including some of her looking very regal on her throne.

Eliza conjured a stand for the camera while Benjamin conjured two comfortable chairs which he place on Nebula's right side as she gestured to them to do.

Casting a spell on the camera so that it would take pictures with a flick of Eliza's wand, the interview commenced.

* * *

Several days later, in Hogwarts' Great Hall as the students sat down to eat breakfast, a flurry of owls flew in, all of them carrying copies of the Daily Prophet that were larger and thicker than usual.

"A flood of owls today, eh? Betcha the Prophet's vaults are filled to the brim from sales of today's edition alone!" Seamus shook his copy out and began to read it.

"I certainly won't be taking you up on that bet, Seamus…" Dean began to read his own copy.

Ron and Ginny sat on either side of Hermione as they read her copy together.

_**Interview With Earth's Fairy Queen**_

_By Eliza Humphries and Benjamin Whitlock_

_Ever since the Fairies of the ancient Queendom of Tir Nan Og revealed themselves to both the Muggle and Wizarding Worlds, both have had something in common for once: being fascinated by them._

_Media outlets both Muggle and Wizarding have pursued them for interviews. While several Muggle media outlets have been granted such interviews, Britain is only the second of the Wizarding communities after the United States of America- where their princess was born- to be granted an interview._

_It all came about when Eliza took a trip to her hometown of Cardiff in Wales one weekend. She had an encounter with a British fairy who was also from that area whose name is Stephania Lewis who draws her powers from nature- plants, trees and the like. (Interviews with British Fairies will come up in subsequent issues starting with Ms Lewis)._

_They had a talk about their different kinds of magic and naturally after a while, the topic of Tir Nan Og came up._

_After expressing the desire to interview Queen Nebula one day, she (Lewis) offered to see what she could do. After some dialogue on a cell phone (a sort of Muggle device that they can talk to each other while on the go with), she said that the Queen had agreed on the condition that the Daily Prophet send two reporters only and that Eliza was one of them._

_So now that the question of how this interview came about has been answered, we shall present one of the most eagerly awaited articles in Daily Prophet history._

_We sit here in the beautiful throne room of Queen Nebula's palace after a guided tour around a garden of flora and fauna that neither reporter has ever seen in either the Muggle or Wizarding Worlds, both of which are still visible through some high, arched, crystal-framed windows, swung wide open outwards._

_The room is painted in a silvery blue, with wall-to-wall dark grey carpeting which gives it a cool, other-worldy air. Crystal statues of various magical creatures and fairies alternate with potted plants on the left and right sides of the room, a silver chandelier with magic golden energy acting as the lights in it hangs above us._

_She sits regally on the throne, flanked on either side by loyal, armed fairy guards, who look as if they could certainly be in a fight with Death Eaters and be the ones to come out alive._

_The interview commences with a simple question: Can you tell us anything about yourself, Your Majesty?_

"_I most certainly can…" She says. "As you may already know, I am the Major Fairy of War and Peace. I draw my powers from either of those concepts. After we were freed by the Winx Club and my niece Roxy from the prison that the Wizards of the Black Circle had us in, my sister Morgana handed over the crown to me as she wanted to live with her husband amongst what you all call Muggles…"_

_Your niece and your sister?_

"_Yes. My niece Princess Roxy, the daughter of my older sister the former Queen Morgana. She really is a lovely girl. I didn't even know about her until we were freed. She is studying at Alfea College for Fairies in the Realm of Magix right now where she is doing quite well and making friends. Until we can establish a fairy school of our own here on Earth which will take some time, that's what any other fairies from this planet may have to do as well. As for Morgana, she hasn't completely abandoned Tir Nan Og of course. She comes by fairly often and helps where she can, plus she has done a few interviews on our behalf…"_

_You say you will establish a fairy school here on Earth. What does that mean for the different magical communities already here on this planet?_

"_It means that for quite a long time, magic will turn up in women and girls much in the manner that you have your Muggle-Borns, plus some of our own may go and have children with the Muggles or some Wizardkind and have fairy daughters of their own. If they wish, they can train as fairies with us or go to Alfea. In fact, it has already started. We do have a few students with us now though not as much as Hogwarts would have, I imagine. There are also those who will choose to study as the witches we are more familiar with and attend Cloud Tower School for Witches in the Realm of Magix instead…"_

_Can you explain the different magic types for us, Your Majesty?_

"_I can indeed. In our kind of magic, some women who have a certain power level are given a choice. In Magix, tests can be done to confirm it. If they do have the right power level, they can choose to become a fairy or a witch. However, there are some who were born fairies or born witches because their female ancestors were such. There are a few exceptions. My niece has a roommate whose older sister and mother are witches, but this roommate was able to choose to study as a fairy. It may have had something to do with the women on her paternal side being fairies, but it can happen. Fairy or witch magic levels can also manifest in a girl whose family magic was never high enough to be able to choose to study as one or the other or a girl might be unfortunate enough not to have enough magic to become a fairy or witch at all, despite coming from a family of them."_

_What about power sources? We hear about fairies having different kinds of powers…_

"_A fairy's source of power can come from the environment, something she is particularly good at, a concept or even just passed down the line whether she had a witch mother/ancestor(s) or not. A fairy might have a witch mother with powers that come from metal and even though she might not be a witch like her mother, she could still draw her fairy powers from the same source. Morgana is the Major Fairy of Thought, I draw my powers from War and Peace yet Morgana's daughter; my niece Roxy has powers that come from animals- feeling what they feel, communicating and enabling communication with them and being able to take on some of their traits among other things."_

_What are your plans for future relations between your Queendom and the Muggle and Wizarding Worlds of Earth?_

"_Well, we are establishing relations with some Muggle governments who will have us. We will allow them to enter the Queendom and study magical history and theory of our kind. We may even establish embassies and have diplomats someday if things go so well. We hope to do the same with Wizarding governments someday."_

_**Part 2 of this interview will be published next week.**_

"AWW!" Ron and Ginny cried out in disappointment as well as a few others around them at the fact that they would have to wait to read the rest.

"I'm a bit disappointed that this is a two-parter myself but this was indeed a good read. I learnt quite a bit from this short article…" Hermione said.

Ron, Ginny and several other Gryffindors seated nearby looked at her incredulously.

"Short? Did you really think that article was _short,_ Hermione?" Ron asked.

"It was already long and is supposed to be a two-parter at that?" Ginny raised an eyebrow.

"Methinks Hermione has a different sense of what's a long read, you two…" Neville continued to munch on his cornflakes as he re-read his own copy. "I would love to be able to go there someday and study their plants. Those photos are absolutely stunning!"

"Lovely photos indeed. Tir Nan Og looks like such a beautiful place…" Colin sighed wistfully as did others.

"Hello everyone!" Luna walked over to the Gryffindor table so Hermione and Ginny made a space between them for her to sit.

"Hey Luna! What did you think about the article?" Ginny spread some butter on her toast.

"I thought it was wonderful. Provided insight into their kind of magic and had some lovely photos as well. I especially liked the one with her standing in the garden…" Luna pointed out the photo in question.

"Very nice indeed. I wonder what plant that is she was touching there…" Neville said.

"I just thought of something! Suppose the Crumpled-Horned Snorkack lives in Tir Nan Og!" Luna squealed.

"Snorkacks don't exist, Luna!" Hermione said exasperatedly.

"A couple months ago you would have said that Tir Nan Og, Magix and these kinds of fairies did not exist either, Hermione. Don't knock it until you know for sure…" Neville defended Luna.

A bunch of "ohs" passed through the students seated there as Neville put himself to sit next to Luna, separating her and Hermione, who looked to be turning red with what was either embarrassment or frustration.

"_Hm. Neville's been stepping up and defending Luna much more frequently. I wonder…" _Ginny looked at the pair, who were now having an animated discussion about the article.

Then she looked at her brother and Hermione, who were also discussing the article, albeit with less friendly tones.

They totally fancied each other. They just didn't know it yet…

* * *

Lord Voldemort sat in his favourite chair at Malfoy Manor, reading the Witch Weekly article that Draco had suggested via his mother. The Daily Prophet for that day lay on a table next to him, open to a picture of Nebula flying alongside the reporters sent to interview her.

This would not do. This… distraction of these… winged females would not do. Plus they _could _present a threat should they ever somehow decide to fight against him…

Plus that Potter boy had been gone for months now and he still had not been able to trace him down. He needed to make absolutely sure that the brat was dead and would be unable to stop him before he could claim a full victory.

His Death Eaters had been doing a few murders here and there, plus some Muggle hunting which was usual, but nothing too big since that massacre at a Muggle school in the summer.

That needed to change.

He also needed to find out more about the Realm of Magix and these "Trix". Would they be worthy of being broken out of where they were being held and becoming potential Death Eaters?

Their résumé was rather impressive after all…

But for now, the world had to be reminded that Lord Voldemort was back and was still very much walking, talking, torturing and killing.


	5. Chapter 5

"So… You're going on a date, huh?" Rainer asked.

"No, Rainer. I'm not going on a date. I'm just going with Artu to Magix Central Park to meet Harry and his owl Hedwig!" Roxy sat at the dresser on her side of the bedroom, brushing out her hair.

Currently the twins were holed up in their room working on some project together and Krystal was out with other friends of hers. Otherwise they'd be in here too, bothering Roxy about her meeting with Harry…

"Still sounds like a date to me…" Rainer flopped into her purple-sheeted twin bed.

"Well think what you like, Rainer. It's _not_ a date. Besides, if you stop teasing me about Harry, I'll stop teasing you about a certain someone…" Roxy smirked mischievously as she saw Rainer sit up suddenly behind her via her dresser's mirror.

"You _wouldn't._" Rainer narrowed her eyes.

"Actually she would." Artu piped up.

"See? Artu is just as smart as his human." Roxy stood up and patted him before fixing a leash to his collar.

"Come, Artu. I know you don't like the leash but I can always let you go when we get to the pet section of the park…" Roxy left Rainer behind, chuckling slightly as she did.

* * *

"Hi Harry!" Roxy called out, seeing Harry in the distance with his back turned to her.

He turned around and smiled, revealing him holding Hedwig in her cage.

"Oh, hello Roxy! How are you?" He asked.

"I'm fine. Wow, so this is Hedwig, huh? She's gorgeous…" Roxy cooed.

Hedwig seemed to puff out inside the cage, apparently proud at Roxy's compliment.

Harry and Roxy laughed.

"And this is Artu…" Roxy knelt down to let him off the leash.

"Um. Oh…" Harry felt slightly nervous.

"He's had a bit of a bad experience with dogs…" Roxy explained to her familiar.

"No need to worry about me, Harry. I won't hurt you. I think I'm a pretty nice dog actually…" Artu said, startling Harry.

"_I still have to get used to things like this…"_ Harry muttered.

"You can pat him if you like!" Roxy exclaimed.

"Okay…" Harry reached out to pat Artu nervously.

"That feels really nice…" Artu said happily and Harry relaxed more.

"See, Harry? Dogs are like people in some ways. There are good ones and bad ones!" Roxy smiled.

"I can see that." Harry smiled back as he petted Artu a final time and turned to let Hedwig out of her cage.

The showy owl flew around them a few times, stretching out her wings fully, before landing on Harry's shoulder.

She regarded Roxy for a few seconds before flying over to her shoulder and hooting her apparent approval of Harry's fairy friend.

"Well, it looks like I've got her seal of approval!" Roxy touched Hedwig's feathers lightly.

"Now I know you're a friend for sure." Harry joked.

"Would you like me to offer her the gift of human speech?" Roxy asked.

"_Offer_ her?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"If she doesn't want it, I won't give it to her. If she does…" Roxy half-shrugged.

"I suppose. I'd love to hear what she has to say if she wants to…" Harry nodded.

Roxy looked to just be staring into Hedwig's eyes for close to a minute.

Then she raised a hand which was glowing a soft green to Hedwig's head.

The owl glowed for a few seconds before it faded away.

"So… Did it work?" Harry asked.

"It most certainly did, Harry!" Hedwig exclaimed. "I'm so glad to be able to speak to you at last!"

"Me too. This is still going to take some getting used to, but I'm glad to be able to have an actual conversation with you now. Thanks Roxy!" Harry beamed.

"No problem, Harry. So what do you guys want to do now?" Roxy asked.

Harry's stomach rumbled. "I guess my stomach's decided for us. Where would you like to go?"

"The White Horse is nice, but they don't allow pets in there. How about we go get a picnic basket from Café Violet? They don't allow pets in there either though so I guess I'll go get it…" Roxy said.

"Only if you allow me to buy next time…" Harry nodded.

Roxy giggled. "Deal."

And off they went.

As they walked, Harry thought of Ron and Hermione. His first two friends. His best friends. The last letter he'd gotten from them indicated that they would be on a Hogsmeade trip today. They'd certainly had some interesting times there. He wondered if they'd like a trip to Magix…

Perhaps someday he'd introduce Roxy to them. His new friend Roxy to his old friends Ron and Hermione. He wondered if they'd get along…

"Hey Harry. Anything you'd like in particular?" Roxy asked, startling him out of his thoughts as they reached the doors of their destination.

"Do they serve Earth food in there?"

"They do indeed. Before it opened, the owners spent a year touring Earth and they loved it there. They have a special "Earth menu" because of it…"

"Wonderful. Ask for a few British things then. I haven't had any since I left…"

"I'm hungry for Earth stuff too, come to think of it. We'll make it a British-American basket! Now you just watch Artu for me…" Roxy handed over his leash and went inside.

Harry sat on a nearby bench with the animals and waited. Hedwig landed on Artu's back and the two started a conversation.

As he waited, a few girls walked past him. They looked at him coyly, waved and giggled.

He touched the back of his head, running his fingers through his now long-ish hair nervously. Did they… actually think that that he… was _attractive _or were they messing with him?

"Don't be shy, cutie. We're not vampires. We won't bite!" A pretty, blue-haired, grey-eyed one called.

"Kiss maybe, but not bite!" Another giggled.

Just then, Roxy emerged from the café, basket in hand.

"Hey Ha-" Roxy noticed the girls standing there and giggling.

The girls looked from Harry to Roxy and back again.

"Oh. We didn't know you had a girlfriend!" One of the girls in the group said.

"We're not dating!" Harry and Roxy exclaimed in unison.

"You totally should! You'd work so well together!" A petite blonde said excitedly.

"Come on, Vivian. We didn't come out here to play matchmaker. Though you two _do_ look cute together…" The blue-haired girl, apparently the ringleader, led them off.

Harry and Roxy stared at one another for close to a full minute.

"That was peculiar…" Harry said finally.

"Indeed it was…" Roxy nodded in agreement.

Both their stomachs rumbled in unison.

"Lunch?" Roxy held up the basket.

"Most definitely…" Harry nodded and they all walked back towards the park.

* * *

"Hey there, beautiful."

Harry went to the Red Fountain dragon stables to meet his favourite (and only one he actually liked) dragon.

The dragon rumbled happily.

"Yep. I'm glad to see you too. Hedwig will probably get jealous of the spare time I keep spending with you. Still, apparently the only one who_ can_ really…" Harry rubbed her head.

Stepping back to regard her properly, he thought of something.

"You know, you're the only dragon I've ever met that I've liked and I'm apparently the only person_ you _like too…" I think you deserve a proper name…"

The dragon rumbled again.

"How about… Freida? I think it suits you!" Harry suggested.

The dragon nodded.

"Well then, Freida it is. I'll be back to see you tomorrow. I have a full day of class ahead and studying afterwards…"

"Alright then. Imagine me telling Ron and Hermione that I made friends with a dragon named Freida!" Harry chortled as he left.

* * *

"Take your weapons, young men!" Cordatorta gestured to a giant table covered with various swords, axes and other types of weapons.

They did so; with Harry reaching for a pair of black hilts which came to life at his touch, sprouting red energy in the form of short, single-edged blades- butterfly swords.

"I know that some of you have a particular preference for certain types of weapons, but be reminded that sometimes _you don't get to choose your weapon. _You have to improvise and quickly at that. We won't be doing that in this class, but it_ will_ come up fairly soon." Cordatorta moved to stand behind the table of weapons.

"I hope you've all practiced because today, you'll be showing the rest of the class whatever skill you've picked up so far."

The entire class groaned as one as their instructor pressed a button and a large, silver male figure arose in the centre of the platform.

"This will be your sparring partner. He will fight as viciously as a real opponent would except that any blows from him will merely sting, not maim or kill, obviously. If you win, you will be bowed to by the figure and it will congratulate you. If you lose…" Their instructor shrugged.

Harry and his dorm mates, who were standing close to one another all looked at each other nervously.

"Alright then. Aki, you're up first."

Aki jumped, but shook it off quickly and strode forward.

Clutching his black energy guns- one in each hand, he stood ready.

The figure moved forward, hurling a blast of energy which Aki narrowly dodged.

The trainee Specialist's guns fired, which the figure swiftly dodged.

Jumping into the air, the figure hurled rapid fire energy down, forcing Aki to do something that looked like a rather stupid dance to avoid them.

All the other students snickered.

Aki fired again, his blast catching the figure in the arm, but the figure seemed unaffected.

The figure darted around so quickly that Aki could barely see it- one moment it was in front of him and the next, it had him pinned to the floor.

"You lose." It said to him.

A couple more Specialists went next, some winning and some losing. The first victory of the day went to Harry's roommate Darian. Armed with a dark orange scimitar with a dark grey hilt, he had actually managed to _slice off the figure's head. _It quickly reassembled itself and bowed to congratulate him.

Lucas lost his duel as well, but only narrowly as the figure blasted his silver-hilted, black-bladed broadsword straight out of his hand when he went in for the kill.

Soon enough, it was Harry's turn.

Taking one butterfly sword in each hand, he stepped forward nervously.

When it fired the first blast, Harry dropped to the floor and rolled out of the way of the next one.

Still on the ground, he managed to do some sort of odd spin-kick that knocked the figure off its feet.

He moved in to try and slash the figure but it moved quickly and was able to blast him in the back, knocking him to the floor.

Ignoring the stinging sensation in his back, he rose quickly. The next few blasts he was able to deflect with both butterfly swords clutched in one hand, albeit the impacts leaving him with the sensation of rattling teeth and bones.

"_Come on, Harry. You can't lose this. It might be just a class, but what if this were me against Voldemort?"_ He thought.

He suddenly moved to the left but moved to the right at the last minute, throwing the figure off.

Doing a backflip, he came down with a sword in each hand, slicing off the figure's arms.

Once the figure had re-assembled itself, it bowed to him and congratulated him.

When he went back to join his fellow students, Harry found himself accosted by his roommates.

"How the hell did you manage to _move_ like that?" Aki demanded.

"I won my fight but I still wasn't as quick on my feet as you were. How did you do it?" Darian asked in amazement.

"Was it a lot of practice? I notice that you don't hang around the dorms much when we don't have classes…" Lucas added.

"You could say that…" Harry thought of not only Quidditch, but all the other dangers that he'd been through- he'd be _dead_ if he hadn't moved quickly in those situations…

"Tell you what, Harry. We are going to have a macho guy chat after classes. We will go out, grab some food and have a guy's evening out." Aki put a hand on Harry's shoulder.

"After classes? But we have more classes tomorrow so we shouldn't really be out late and I really do need to study since end-of-semester exams will be on us soon…" He really _was_ starting to sound like Hermione, Harry thought wryly.

"_Fine. _But we're moving it up to the weekend then. Don't think you'll be getting off!" Aki warned him, just as Cordatorta was getting ready to dismiss the class.

* * *

"This Quidditch thing sounds pretty interesting. I think I'd try playing it if I could…" Darian said.

They were all seated at a table in one of Magix's many fast-food restauraunts- The Mad Cow. It had taken Harry some time to get over the name, but once his roommates persuaded him that it meant a totally different thing in Magix, he felt more comfortable.

"Yeah. It is interesting and rather fun to play though my friend Hermione thinks otherwise… Darian, with your build, you'd probably be a good Beater!" Harry spoke through a mouthful of chicken.

"Are there books about this Quidditch?" Lucas asked.

"Yes there are. I have some back in my trunk. I'll let you borrow them when we get back, Lucas…" harry answered.

"Enough about the books. Tell us more about that Quidditch World Cup that you went to!" Aki exclaimed.

The three of them listened in rapt attention as Harry wove the tale from getting ready to leave The Burrow to just after the match ended.

"Wish I could have been there…" Aki said as they got ready to leave.

"Me too. If links are ever established with the Wizarding World on Earth properly, there should be an exhibition match. Invite some good players from all over Earth to come here and play or something…" Lucas said.

They walked through the streets of Magix continuing to talk, the main conversation topic being about whatever Harry could tell them of Earth.

"I think it would be a great idea if they ever had an exhibition match here. I bet Krum would be invited to play if it ever came off, but that's probably a long way away. The Wizarding World has its own issues to deal with, especially the U.K." Harry frowned.

"I know this may sound sappy, but care to share? You always frown like that when you talk of your home…" Darian started to frown as well.

Harry stopped walking for a moment, putting his hands into his jeans pockets.

"If Magix and the other realms are pushing for relations with Earth's Wizarding World, stories of famous witches and wizards will make it here eventually, so I'd best be the one to tell you about myself…" Harry said.

"You're famous there? Whatever did you do?" Lucas asked.

"I survived a killing curse from an evil megalomaniac called Lord Voldemort…" Harry told them the story of how he became the Boy-Who-Lived.

All three of his roommates had looks of pure amazement on their faces.

"We have our own killing curses here as well, but I've never heard of anyone surviving them here, furthermore at such a young age…" Lucas said in awe.

"Don't treat me any differently because of it. I hated that back on Earth and I'll hate it here too…" Harry narrowed his eyes at them.

"Wouldn't dream of it. I may act a little reckless and maybe even downright stupid occasionally, but you do have my respect- even before you told us about this. Perhaps someday I will have your friendship as well. I certainly hope so…" Darian said and the others nodded in agreement.

Harry felt bowled over at this revelation. How could he already have gotten their respect? Plus once he told them about surviving the Avada Kedavra curse, they managed to get over the initial shock rather quickly instead of staring at him like an idiot for a good long while. He supposed it was the whole "different world" thing, but _still…_

"My guess is that there's more to tell, but we can save that for another time. Let's talk about… _nicer things…_" Aki glanced at a group of giggling girls who sat on a bench they were about to pass.

"Hey, cuties! Want to hang with us?" One called out, making the group of girls giggle even more.

"They actually think_ we're_ good-looking?" Harry asked.

"Of course! We're a bunch of awesome, handsome Red Fountain students. Never doubt it for a moment, Harry!" Aki smiled back at the girls.

"I really should cut my hair…" Harry ran his fingers through his hair which had grown to near shoulder length since he first left Earth in mid-July- it was near the end of November now.

"Come on then! A bunch of lovely ladies have asked us to hang out with them. We should be gentlemen and accept!" Aki walked over to the girls.

"I don't know, Aki…" Lucas voiced Harry's own thoughts.

"Well then, you stay there and look like idiots while we enjoy these lovely ladies' company…" Darian walked over to join Aki and the girls.

Lucas and Harry looked at one another, shrugged and went along to join them.

* * *

When the boys got back to Red Fountain just before curfew, the topic had, quite naturally turned to girls.

"That was surprisingly fun…" Harry admitted as he used his ID card to open their dorm room.

"Told you you'd have fun…" Darian slurred as he stumbled inside.

"You're lucky that it's just Friday night. You'll have all weekend to recover from that awful hangover you're going to have." Lucas said in disgust.

"No hangover potion?" Darian asked.

"None whatsoever."

"Damn you."

Harry snickered.

"How about those girls we hung out with tonight, huh? Bunch of beauties they were…" Aki flopped into a chair.

"Indeed." Lucas nodded. "It was pretty fun, I must admit."

"Speaking of girls, have any of you seen any you like around since we started here?" Aki asked.

"Well, there is one fairy at Alfea that I like…" Lucas smiled goofily at the thought.

"Spill dude. Don't keep it to yourself. Who's the lucky lady?" Darian half-slurred.

"I kind of like Rainer Del Mar of Andros. She's a freshman just like us. I met her at the dance at Cloud Tower. We didn't get to talk much then, but we butted into each other at Magix Library afterwards. We talk occasionally but I wouldn't mind talking more…" Lucas smiled again, except this time, it was less goofy.

"That Rainer girl is a looker alright, but my eye's on this one half of a twin- I think she's Rainer's roommate Athena. She's fun. I haven't spoken to her since the dance but I wouldn't mind getting to know her at all…" Aki said.

"No specific girls for me. All I'm doing now is enjoying the sights and having fun, if you catch my drift." Darian slurred.

"Despite you being drunk, yes, I_ do_ catch your drift. You're awful at holding alcohol, Darian…" Harry snorted.

"The whole bunch of you are weaklings and cowards. You'd never beat me in a drinking contest. Now who do you like, Harry?"

"Who, me? I don't have my eye on any girls…" Harry started to sound nervous.

"Oh yes you do, according to what I hear from Rainer. She says that you and Roxy have been going out quite often…" Lucas smirked.

The other guys started to chuckle.

"So _that's_ where you disappear to every weekend!" Aki exclaimed.

Harry sunk down into his chair, reddening.

"I don't blame him. Princess Roxy isn't bad looking at all…" Darian commented.

"Roxy is just my _friend,_ okay? We have a lot in common!" Harry protested.

"All the more to try for a date, huh?" Aki said.

"How did you come to meet her? Was it at the dance as well?" Lucas asked.

"No. I met her in the summer shortly after I found myself in Magix. Pointed Stella in the wrong direction when Roxy was trying to hide from that Solarian Princess' shopping efforts in the mall…"

"No wonder you two bonded so well. I wouldn't want to be caught up in one of Stella's infamous shopping sprees at all…" Aki shuddered at the very thought- as did everyone else.

"So… When are you going to ask her out?" Darian asked.

"We are just _friends. _I will not ask her out on a date! Besides, we've only known each other for a little over four months…" Harry protested.

Lucas rolled his eyes. "It's not as if you're going to marry her and have kids together…"

"Yeah. Just have a little fun! From what you told us of your past, you need and _deserve_ to have fun more than the rest of us…" Darian said.

"I am _not_ having this conversation with you all." Harry stood up and walked into bed to the sounds of his roommates laughing, no doubt at him.

* * *

Meanwhile, Roxy and her roommates were having their own discussions about dating and crushes as they sat in their nightgowns/pajamas.

"I really don't see why I shouldn't go after Helia…" Krystal said as she pained her nails light blue.

"Possibly because he's _Flora's boyfriend?_" Roxy said in an exasperated tone. "How many times do we have to tell you this?"

"But he said…" Krystal was cut off by Rainer.

"Helia had an idiot moment when he said Flora was a _friend_, Krystal. All guys have them. You should know that!"

"He just had a slip up which with 100 percent certainly has put him in the… as Roxy says that they say on Earth… _the hot seat…_" Athena said.

"I agree. I know you're in denial, Krystal, but Helia is Flora's boyfriend, end of discussion, _next case._" Anahita said firmly.

"Fine." Krystal pouted. "What are all your dating prospects like?"

"Nonexistent. I have seen no boys around that particularly appeal to me..." Anahita sighed.

"Seriously? With all the good candidates around?" Athena asked her twin incredulously.

"I _am_ being serious, Athena!" Anahita exclaimed.

"Even I'll admit that there are some pretty good looking guys around here and I'm not particularly interested in dating…" Roxy said.

"_Oh?_ Any guys on this short list that you can name?" Krystal sat up.

"Nope. Not really…" Roxy replied.

"_Lies._ I have a source out of Red Fountain that says one Harry of Earth has been going out fairly often on weekends and I'm pretty sure that it's with you. And I was there when you went on your last date with him, so don't deny it!" Rainer exclaimed.

Roxy rolled her eyes as the other girls started to giggle.

"How many times do I have to tell you that it wasn't a date? Besides, you have no right to be doing any teasing what with you and-" Rainer cut Roxy off before she could finish.

"Don't try to take the spotlight off yourself, Roxy! We're talking about you and Harry now!" Rainer shook her head.

"Ah, the same Harry we saw in that bookstore once and that you hung around with at the dance? He's cute, but not my kind of cute. I think he'd suit you, Roxy!" Krystal exclaimed.

"Yeah. Imagine the cute babies they'd make together!" Rainer clutched her sides as laughter shook her frame and the others did as well when Roxy reddened.

"Rainer! And I thought that you were supposed to be nice!" Roxy exclaimed.

"Who, _me? _With witches in my family, you learn when not to be nice. In this case, teasing you about your _friend_ Harry is _fun,_ nice or not." The Androsian fairy grinned.

"Who wants to be that they'll be at least dating casually by the end of the school year or before the next one starts?" Rainer asked.

"Not me. I'd lose…" Krystal said before they all cracked up in giggles again.

Roxy sighed. "I am done with this. _Goodnight._"

Her roommates giggled even more as she shut the door to hers and Rainer's room.

She touched Artu lightly, who as in his pet bed at the bottom of her own bed and already asleep.

"I like them, but they're just really silly sometimes. Me dating Harry indeed. We're just friends…" Roxy pulled up her sheets and snuggled into bed.


	6. Chapter 6

"What do you all plan on doing for the upcoming end-of-semester break in a few days?" Aki asked, as he looked around the flat for any of his stray belongings.

"I'm going home. Want to spend some time with my family there. What about the rest of you?" Lucas asked.

"I'm staying behind in Magix. My family's coming over here so I'll be spending the break with them in some house they've rented for the holiday…" Darian said.

"As for me, I'll go travelling around my home planet with some friends. There are several regions there that I've only ever seen in pictures…" Aki picked up a T-Shirt off the floor and tossed it into his suitcase. "What about you, Harry?"

"I'm not sure. Even with all my issues there, I kind of do miss home still. Or maybe it's not home, but the friends that are there that I miss…" Harry sighed.

"Is there a way for you to visit those friends without this meddling Ministry or this Dumbledore dude not interfering?" Lucas asked.

"Maybe if I use a disguise or something. But it's also a very dangerous time not only for me, but for everyone else. My exit was rather public and if it's known that I was back and with any of them…" Harry trailed off.

"That could be a problem. Maybe we could help you with a steadier disguise to be seen in public with. You've went back to Earth once before in a disguise but the way you describe it, the magic holding it together wasn't very stable yet. Not blaming you since you were new to that kind of magic then…" Lucas mused.

"I am considerably better at Potions now…" Harry thought aloud.

"Shapeshifiting Potion? It gives you the ability to change your appearance for twenty four hours after a single dose…" Darian suggested.

"I suppose that_ could_ be the answer… Thanks for the suggestion. I also need to be prepared just in case anything happens, so let me go thoroughly prepare for my visit..." Harry dashed back into his room.

* * *

"So… You're going back home for the Christmas holiday?" Roxy asked as she and Harry walked through Magix Central Park with Hedwig and Artu accompanying them.

"It's a risky move, but yes. I really do miss my friends there and I have gifts to give to them that I dare not try to send so I'll have to give them in person…" Harry said.

"Like what?"

"Ways that we can communicate without being traced, things that they can use to help protect themselves and get to safety if it ever comes down to that…" Harry fiddled his fingers.

"Oh. Oh…" Roxy blinked. "In that case, I have something that might help. I was working on a project with Athena to create this…" She waved her hands and a simple silver bracelet appeared in her hand.

"What is it?" Harry raised an eyebrow. "It looks like just an ordinary bracelet to me…"

"But it isn't just an ordinary bracelet. It's an energy shield bracelet that would work on anyone with or without magic. It allows non-magicals to shield themselves and strengthens the shields of any magical beings. I don't think it would work on the Unforgiveable Curses you told me about though…" Roxy frowned.

"But it would be damn useful against anything else. Can you make two more? I'm a pretty decent shield maker now but my two best friends at home… I don't know how they're faring in that regard now…" Harry asked.

"I can try. When do you leave for Earth?" Roxy asked.

"Two days…" Harry said.

"Only two? Damn!" Roxy whistled. "But I think I can do it if I spend most of my free time…"

"No, no, no. You don't have to-" Harry was cut off when Roxy put a finger to his lips.

"I _want_ to, Harry. In such a short time, we've become pretty good friends and from what I hear, your home country is in serious trouble. I _want_ to do what I can to help you and your friends…"

"Wow… I think you really should meet Ron and Hermione one day. You're doing this for them and you haven't even met…" Harry said in admiration of her.

"From what you say, I'd be glad to meet them. I'll need to leave now to get to work on them though. I'll call you later, Harry!" Roxy kissed him on the cheek and walked off with Artu, waving back at Harry.

Harry felt himself reddening as he put a hand to the cheek Roxy kissed him on and Hedwig spoke.

"Even I can see, it Harry and I'm not even human. You're really going to ask her out on what you humans call a "date" soon…"

Harry reddened even more.

* * *

"Our first Christmas without Harry. It just doesn't seem the same without him, you know..." Ron said as he and Hermione ate their last breakfast before leaving Hogwarts for the Christmas holidays.

"It wouldn't have come to that if people had just listened to him and not given him such a rough time- last year especially. I don't blame him for losing it..." Hermione finished off her porridge.

"I'll say... So do you have any plans in particular for the holiday?" Ron asked.

"I'll be spending time with my parents this year. It's high time that I spent more quality time with them, given what's going on in our world and all. You never know when something might happen..." Hermione said sadly.

"Come on, Hermione. Don't look at it like that..." Ron tried to reassure her, though deep down inside, he knew he felt the same way.

"How can we not? Not only am I Muggle-Born, I'm also one of Harry Potter's best friends _and_ I was a part of the Ministry Six! That puts a bigger target on my back than normal!" Hermione exclaimed.

"I guess you're right. I'm the same thing except I'm a Blood Traitor and not Muggle-Born but to the Death Eaters, it might just as well be the same thing. I must admit I do worry sometimes too. But don't worry. Whatever might come our way, we'll pull through it _together._ I promise you that." Ron held her hands between his.

"You can actually be such a sweetheart sometimes. Who knew?" Hermione chuckled.

"Don't let the guys hear you say that. They'd take the Mickey out of me..." Ron smiled back slightly.

"Merry Christmas you two. Just thought we'd stop by and give you your gifts before we all get caught up in the madness of the Hogwarts Express..." Neville and Luna walked over to them, shaking them out of their thoughts.

"Merry Christmas you two." Hermione smiled at the pair, who had decided to start dating only a few weeks previously

"Here's my stuff..." Neville handed a box of assorted Wizarding candies to Ron and a Colour Changing Scarf (Change it to any colour or pattern with just a thought!) to Hermione. "I never bothered with wrapping it. Hope it's not a problem..."

"Not at all! I love this scarf, Neville! Where'd you get it?" Hermione asked, wrapping it over her own Gryffindor scarf and watching it change to lilac.

"Gladrags Wizardwear in Hogsmeade last Hogsmeade weekend. Glad you like it..." Neville smiled.

"And mine..." Luna handed Ron a book on Quidditch teams from around the world and Hermione a book on handy charms.

"I thought you'd appreciate a more _practical_ gift Hermione. We can agree to disagree about the Snorkaks but this book would be useful for any of us, wouldn't it?" Luna smiled.

"It would indeed. Thank you Luna. Our gifts for you both are back in our trunks though so we'll have to send them to you by Owl Post..." Hermione gave them both a hog.

"No problem. Enjoy your holidays!" They waved as they walked to join the crowds of students going to fetch their things for the train ride home.

* * *

A brown-haired young man with grey eyes behind a pair of oval glasses walked along the streets of Diagon Alley, taking in the sights around him. He hadn't been to the Alley in several months and as he walked withed, her remembered the happy memories he had there, even though the shop windows were lined with posters of various wanted witches and wizards instead of colourful advertisements.

He sighed at the changes. The last time he had been here, he had noticed the changes, but even then they weren't as drastic as this...

Heading back to The Leaky Cauldron, he waited for his friends to arrive.

Barely a few minutes later, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger had entered the room, with their families in tow.

"Go on ahead with the Weasleys, mum and dad. We'll catch up with you later..." Hermione urged them on.

Both Mrs Weasley and Mrs Granger glanced at the pair suspiciously before turning rather reluctantly to go.

_"Must think they're dating or something..."_ He chuckled to himself.

Once the two families were gone, Ron and Hermione turned their attention back to the room and glanced in his direction.

Glancing at one another, they nodded and made their way over.

"Well then, how are things, _Harry?_" Hermione asked in an undertone.

"Great, Hermione. You know that business with the Time Turner in our third year still boggles me. And Ron, remember the Acromantulas? Remember what that big one said? Aragog, I think his name was?" The young man asked.

"I wish I didn't..." Ron shuddered at the memory.

"So, now that we've confirmed that it is in fact me..." Harry raised his wand under the table and cast a few privacy charms.

"How was your school year?" He beamed at his two best friends.

"Almost the same as usual except that you're not there, which, when you look at it, doesn't make it the same at all..." Hermione said.

"Though Snape is still as grouchy as ever and we've got a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher as usual. Professor Jones is okay though..." Ron said.

"Professor Jones as in Hestia Jones? The witch that was in the Order?" Harry raised a brown eyebrow.

"The one and the same. She's actually a pretty decent teacher and certainly is a far cry better than Umbitch..." Hermione said.

"Yep. We actually get to practice what we learn and she doesn't make us write lines with a Blood Quill in detentions- not that I actually got one with her..." Ron commented.

"Well that's good at least..." Harry smiled.

"What about you? Where have you been?" Hermione asked.

"I'm sorry you guys. I can't tell you. The less people from around here know where I am now, the better. I don't want Dumbledore to try and pull me back into his grasp again. I'm _happy _where I am now, I'm learning how to really fight and when the time comes, Voldemort won't stand a _chance._" Harry said determinedly.

"But _where on Earth_ would you go that would take you and train you like that and not boast about having the Boy-Who-Lived under their tutelage?" Hermione asked, somewhat annoyed.

_"Whoever said anything about it being on Earth?" _Harry thought to himself, smirking, which only served to annoy Hermione even further. "Never mind that, Hermione. Look, I have gifts for both of you." He pulled out two small boxes wrapped in red gift paper.

"You came all the way back here from wherever it was you were hiding to give us _gifts?_" Ron raised an eyebrow.

"Not just any gifts, Ron. Open them and see what they are..." Harry said.

They ripped the paper off and opened the boxes.

"A bracelet?" Hermione twirled it around on her finger.

"What am I going to do with a bracelet, Harry?" Ron asked, still staring at his in the box.

"Put them on and you'll see. They aren't any ordinary bracelets..." Harry smiled.

Ron and Hermione looked at one another, shrugged and slipped their bracelets on.

Immediately they felt the effect of the bracelet connecting with their magic and looked at one another- and then Harry- in awe.

"What are these and what do they do? No ordinary piece of jewellery would have that kind of effect..." Hermione asked.

"They're Shield Bracelets. They will strengthen any shields you make by considerable amounts. They won't shield you from the Unforgiveables, but they'd be damn useful otherwise. They're also especially charmed so that they'll work only for you. They're the most important gift so I decided to give you those first..."

"Wow. Thank you so much Harry! These really will come in useful, though I really do hope I won't have to test them any time soon..." Hermione ran her finger over the bracelet that she had slipped onto her right wrist.

"I hope so too, but with us, you never know..." Harry chuckled wryly.

"Where did you get them?" Ron asked.

"I asked a _friend_ to make them for me and she did. I hope you'll be able to meet her someday..." Harry smiled.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Is our dear friend Harry getting some real romance that he deserves?"

Ron snickered.

"She's not my girlfriend Hermione and I'm not here to talk about her. I have other gifts for you..." Harry reddened as Ron and Hermione snickered at the expression on his face.

"Anyway... These are communication mirrors. I got the idea from Sirius. These will also only work for you. They're both linked to each other and to mine so we could always have a three-way conversation if we wanted to or if you just wanted to talk to me individually or to each other..."

Ron and Hermione had barely taken the mirrors from him when they heard a big explosion sound outside and the sounds of screaming and terror filled the air.

Several witches and wizards came running through The Leaky Cauldron screaming.

"Death Eaters! Death Eaters are attacking Diagon Alley!" One wizard screamed as he hustled to get his family to safety.

"They _would_ interrupt our reunion..." Harry sighed, standing up.

"I guess it's time to put those Shield Bracelets to use..." He said, heading to the door.

Ron and Hermione stared at one another in amazement, before bustling after him.

* * *

Diagon Alley was a mess of confusion.

People were running around screaming and panicking, trying to get away from the pain and chaos that the Death Eaters were causing without a conscience.

"Incendio!" One Death Eater set Madam Malkin's on fire, grinning as he did.

However, he was promptly hit in the neck with a severing charm by Percy Weasley, breathing heavily.

All Percy had come to Diagon Alley to do was purchase some new dress robes for a Ministry event from Madam Malkin.

All of a sudden, the sounds of chaos had erupted around the shop and before he knew it, the shop was filled with Death Eaters, cowards hiding behind those black robes and silver masks.

He had managed to fight his way out, but unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for Madam Malkin who he'd watch take a Bludgeoning Hex to the head.

He had seen his family in the alley earlier, but they hadn't seen him. He could only hope they were faring okay even if they didn't get out before the attack started. They were all good fighters. Surely they'd survive...

He sensed movement behind him and lashed out with an Avada Kedavra curse aimed at the Death Eater who was about to do the same to him.

He ran through the street, trying to find anyone who needed help. Despite the popular belief in his family, he wasn't a complete asshole after all...

When he turned a corner, something he saw made his blood run cold.

Ron and Ginny were doing their best to fight off half a dozen Death Eaters who were cornering them, but they were losing.

There was a dark red shield around them but he knew that even the strongest of shields wouldn't hold out against the Unforgiveables so he rushed forward.

Waving his wand in the air as if her were forming a lasso, rings of fire descended around the six Death Eaters and pulled them away from his youngest siblings.

Flicking his wand, the Death Eaters screamed in pain as they instantly went up in flames, nothing being left of them but ashes when the flames died down a few seconds later.

"Woah. That was some bloody impressive magic, Percy!" Ron breathed.

"Thanks, Ron. Typical day in your life being friends with Harry Potter isn't it? Anyway, we can chat and catch up later after we all get out of this mess!" Percy exclaimed.

Ginny narrowed her eyes at him, still not forgetting what Percy had put the family through the year before but put that aside for the more important task at hand: surviving this attack.

* * *

"Mum! Dad! NO!" Hermione screamed out as she saw her parents fall one after the other to killing curses.

She knew there was the potential for this to happen the whole time but to actually see it happen...

She'd been separated from them and by the time she'd spotted them in the distance it was already too late to do anything for them...

She shoved aside the tears and found herself filled with pure rage as she charged towards her parents' murderers.

"BOMBARDA MAXIMA!" She cried, sending rapid fire blasting curses towards the Death Eaters.

One of them sent a severing charm towards her, but the Shield Bracelet did its job and surrounded Hermione with a bright red shield that deflected the Death Eater's curses and hexes, but allowed hers to pass through and make impact with their intended targets.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

One Death Eater Apparated behind her and cast the killing curse at her before she could react, but the curse was blocked by a giant block of stone which was blasted into pieces the moment the curse made impact with it.

"You're going to regret that..." Harry (still in disguise) said dangerously.

"Oh yeah. Like a little kid is going to stop me." The Death Eater chortled.

Harry's wand moved in rapid slashing motions, each slash forming a black, thin strip of light around each body part the spell made impact with.

The Death Eater only had one moment to display a look of surprise before he literally fell to pieces.

"I'm not just any little kid, Death Muncher." Harry growled.

"_Death Muncher?_ Really Harry?" Despite everything, this was the only thing Hermione could find to say.

"He was going to kill you. I merely responded in kind, albeit in a more... _creative _way... What happened to the others?" Harry asked urgently.

"We got separated. Mum... dad... dead... Death Eaters killed them... I don't know about the others!" Hermione burst out wailing.

"Okay Hermione. We won't let the Death Eaters get away with this. I promise. Let's go kick some Death Eater bum and then you can let all the tears you want fall, okay?" Harry jabbed his wand forward and a stream of dark blue energy cut straight through a Death Eater's chest like a laser.

Hermione nodded tearfully and resumed the fight.

* * *

Vernon and Petunia Dursley were setting up to have the best Christmas of their lives for a very long time.

That... _boy_ was finally out of their household and looked like he'd never come back.

Petunia was happily cleaning the living room when Vernon came in from work, with a big smile on his face.

"Guess what, Pet?" He asked cheerfully.

"What dear?" Petunia actually paused her cleaning to listen.

"They gave me a big Christmas bonus today so it looks like we'll be able to take that luxury vacation in Italy in the new year!" He exclaimed.

"That's fantastic dear!" Petunia beamed.

"Mum, Dad, I'm hungry. Can we go out for something to eat?" Dudley lumbered down the stairs.

"Of course we can, son! We've got lots of things to celebrate now!" Vernon grinned.

He was just about to head into the kitchen for a snack when the front door was blasted completely off its hinges and people strode in wearing strange silver masks and clad in black robes. Black... _freak_ robes...

"WHAT ARE YOU FREAKS DOING IN MY HOUSE? GET OUT BEFORE I CALL THE POLICE!" He roared, already starting to turn the weird, blotchy sort of purple that he did whenever someone even _hinted_ at magic.

"Your stupid police will be of no good to you, you stupid Muggle. CRUCIO!" Lucius Malfoy's voice came though one mask as he raised his wand.

Vernon fell to the floor screaming and thrashing about in pain as Petunia and Dudley shrieked in horror.

They tried to escape, but they too were also hit with torture curses.

All three Dursleys were now in various parts of the house now experiencing the worst amount of pain they would ever experience in their lives.

They all starting convulsing, their eyeballs rolled inside their heads, foam leaked out the sides of their mouths...

The Death Eaters all shrieked and cackled with delight as they wreaked as much damage as possible in the home, casing hexes and curses at various household objects.

When they left, they didn't even spare the Durselys a Killing Curse but with several wands raised high into the air set the house alight with several Incendios, leaving the "filthy Muggles" to burn alive, unable to escape.

* * *

Neville and Luna were back-to-back in his family's Manor fighting the Death Eaters that had decided to descend on them as they were having their lunch.

"And it was such a nice lunch too..." Neville said as one Death Eater upended the dining room table and threw it at them with a spell, which the pair managed to block with a pair of Shield Charms.

Luna glanced across into another room and saw Neville's grandmother battling Bellatrix Lestrange.

"Neville, your grandmum!" She exclaimed, nodding in their direction.

"But... you?" Neville said, unsure.

"Go! She's your _family!_ You'd never forgive yourself if you didn't do your best for her! GO!" Luna shouted.

Neville leaned in for a quick kiss and bolted off to fight alongside his grandmother.

"Oh look! It's the itty, bitty, Longbottom baby come to play!" Bellatrix cackled when she saw him.

"I'm not here to play, Bellatrix. I'm here to get you the hell out of my family's home!" Soon enough, Neville dominated the three way duel between him, his grandmother and Voldemort's Chief Psycho Bitch.

"CRUCIO!" She screamed, but Neville sidestepped the curse and it slammed into a coat of arms hanging above a fireplace, shattering it into pieces.

"Well, well, well. It looks like the little, bitty baby can play the big wizard's game after all!" Bellatrix said in mild surprise.

Neville focused on nothing except cutting down the evil bitch in front of him that sent his parents into insanity all these years ago and attacked his home while he, his grandmother, his girlfriend and her father were all just trying to have a good time.

Always ruining people's lives in the worst ways possible... Well he was going to stop that or die trying!

"What's going to happen after I eliminate the last of the Longbottom line, huh? Perhaps I'll end you after I take care of your precious little girlfriend. What was her name? Oh yes. Loony Lovegood..." Bellatrix cackled.

"You're hardly in any position to be calling anyone Loony! And you WILL NOT TOUCH MY LUNA YOU BITCH!" Neville's blind rage overcame him and he started letting loose every potentially lethal curse and hex he could.

Bellatrix was surprised at this sudden change in his demeanour, but adjusted quickly.

"Bellatrix, we need to back off! The Aurors are on their way and they managed to take down about half of us already!" A male Death Eater called out.

"WHAT?" Bellatrix shrieked.

They heard the pops of wizards and witches Apparating onto the grounds of Longbottom Manor and Bellatrix's eyes widened.

"RETREAT!" She shrieked, managing to Apparate out, along with a few others before the Anti-Apparation charms went up.

With a squad of Aurors now on the premises, the tide of the battle quickly turned in favour of the Longbottoms.

Not long afterwards, all the Death Eaters still on the grounds had been captured, injured or killed.

Neville ran through the grounds looking for his grandmother, Luna and Luna's father, his heart pounding in his chest.

"Grandmum? Luna? Mr Lovegood? Where are you? Answer me if you can hear me!" He shouted.

"Neville! NEVILLE! In here!" He heard Luna's voice call out.

He dashed into the room and stopped short when he saw Luna and his grandmother trying frantically to stop the bleeding from Mr Lovegood's stomach.

"They got him with a Blasting Hex through one of his shields!" Luna cried. "I can't lose him now. I can't! He's the only family I have left in this world!"

"Step aside, Miss Lovegood. We'll need to get him to St Mungo's if we want him to survive." Tonks, who was one of the Aurors sent to the scene entered the room with a few Healers from St Mungo's who quickly prepared Mr Lovegood for transport to the hospital.

"What the hell happened today?" Neville wondered aloud.

"A lot. A lot has happened today, Mr Longbottom. You weren't the only ones attacked. Harry's Muggle family was attacked and Diagon Alley was attacked as well when Ron, Hermione and Ginny were all present. We don't know what's going on there. All we can tell now is that Voldemort decided to send a message that he's still very much around and very much lethal..." Tonks looked grim.

Neville paled even more than he already was.

"An attack on Diagon Alley? And you don't know what's happening over there?" Mrs Longbottom asked.

"No. It's lots of chaos and St Mungo's is starting to become filled with casualties. As soon as we're done here, I'm going back to the Ministry to see what else I can do today. Trust me, I want to see Bellatrix cut down very much too. I can't believe the bitch is actually my aunt..." Tonks growled.

"Your _aunt?_ Bellatrix is your aunt?" Neville asked in shock.

"Yes she is, but I'm nothing like her. Trust me on that one. Now let's get back to dealing with what just happened, shall we?" Tonks was back in full Auror mode.

* * *

By now, Diagon Alley was in complete disarray as Death Eaters wreaked whatever mayhem and destruction they pleased.

Dumbledore and several Order of the Phoenix members had arrived on the scene as well as several Aurors and the tide of the battle was turning to their favour until...

"Dumbledore! You-Know-Who was seen near what's left of Flourish and Blotts with even more Death Eaters in tow!" Lupin ran over to him, blasting away a Death Eater who had tried to get into his way.

"Really? I wouldn't have expected him to show up here. I suppose I'd better go see what he wants, shall I?" Dumbledore waved his wand and three nearby Death Eaters were hoisted into the air and slammed back down into the ground, not even moving just a little after the impact.

However, Dumbledore didn't have far to go before he encountered Lord Voldemort himself.

"Ah, Albus Dumbledore. How delightful to see you..." Voldemort's sneer looked even creepier with a lack of certain facial features.

"I'm sorry I can't say the same for you, Tom..." Dumbledore said coolly.

"I'm going to kill you where you stand, you ignorant old man!" Voldemort hissed.

"We shall see about that, won't we Tom?" Dumbledore seemed completely unbothered.

Everyone around them, Death Eaters, Aurors and the general public alike seemed to stop to watch the fight (most of them seeking a moderately safe spot from which to do so of course...).

There was doubt that anyone present would ever witness such a fight ever again.

Objects went flying, were transfigured and blasted to pieces. Spells were cast that the majority never even knew existed, far less how to perform them.

The fight seemed to go on forever, until Voldemort got in a curse that knocked Dumbledore to the ground, but did not kill him.

Voldemort stood gloating as many in the Alley gasped in horror or cried.

At that moment, just when the Avada Kedavra curse was about to leave Voldemort's lips, a Stinging Hex struck Voldemort right in the bum, causing him to yelp in pain.

Though it could be considered an amusing sight looking at the self-styled Dark Lord with his hands clamped over his bum, no one on either side dared to laugh.

Except the one who cast the Stinging Hex in the first place, of course.

"What's the matter, Voldemort, can't handle a little stinging?" Harry, who was still in disguise, chortled.

"You dare?" Voldemort hissed.

"Yes, I do dare as a matter of fact. I dislike Dumbledore's meddling immensely, but I don't think he deserved to die by your evil, cowardly hands..." Harry replied.

"Who is this weakling who dares challenge Lord Voldemort?" Voldemort raised his wand, ready to strike.

"Oh I do believe you know me, Voldy. It's just that I look a little different than what you're used to..."

Harry raised his hand above his head and bit by bit, his disguise faded away until Voldemort was looking at the Boy-Who-Lived himself.

"...and I'm not as weak as I used to be. Plus I'm not even done with my training yet..." Harry twirled his wand.

The various hidden occupants of Diagon Alley remained completely silent, too stunned to even utter a single sound.

_"You..."_ Voldemort hissed.

"Me. Seriously though, what is it with you and hissing? I know you're a Slytherin and a Parselmouth but that's taking it a bit too far..." Harry was currently putting on his best brave face, but on the inside, he was still quite terrified.

Despite the impressive displays of magic he had put on earlier, he was still not a fully trained wizard in any world only stepping in to defend his friends.

Yet, here he stood, wand-to-wand with the same Dark Wizard that had wreaked so much havoc, killed so many people including his parents (and facilitated the death of Hermione's) and generally making his life even more of a living hell than any normal person's.

"So, Harry Potter has decided to return to Britain from wherever he was hiding after his little temper tantrum with Dumbledore so many months ago. Entertaining though it was, seeing the Golden Boy stand up to that bumbling old fool, you must still die..." Voldemort said.

"I wouldn't expect it to be any other way, Voldy..." Harry said, thinking about Ron and Hermione, his first ever friends, Ginny, Neville and Luna, who had eventually proven themselves to be good friends as well and even Roxy, who he had known for less time than all of them, but had proven herself to be a good friend even in that short time.

He wasn't going to die here today.

Voldemort cast his first Crucio and Harry sidestepped it, flinging back another spell which Voldemort blocked.

"You will have to do much better than that, _child..._" Voldemort sneered.

Harry shrugged. "Okay then!"

He sent rapid fire spell after spell at the evil wizard in front of him, including a few that Saladin himself had taught him.

Voldemort cast another Crucio at him, but Harry's Shield Bracelet activated, surrounding him with a dark red shield that managed to deflect the curse.

Harry and Voldemort barely had time to register their astonishment at this fact before the fight grew even more ferocious.

"Why won't you just die, boy?" Voldemort hissed.

"I want to rid the world of your horrid hissing voice." Harry retorted.

He however, was starting to feel tired and knew he had to end the fight soon otherwise the darkness threatening to consume him would be permanent.

_"Even the simplest spell can turn into the most lethal, when you twist its purpose even slightly, Harry. Remember that."_ He remembered Saladin telling him.

Well, there _was _that portal spell... But he'd only managed to use that for himself, not other people...

But who else to try such a risky manoeuvre on than Voldemort?

Harry breathed heavily as he raised his wand and moved it in a circular motion.

A bright gold portal formed behind Voldemort and Harry swiped his wand, sending forward a wave of energy which forced Voldemort and a few nearby Death Eaters into it before it closed off.

The remaining Death Eaters panicked at seeing their leader disappear in a completely unfamiliar spell and Disapparated.

Harry sunk to his knees.

"Harry, Harry..." he heard Lupin's voice in his ears as the sounds of chaos broke out again, this time with the innocent Alley patrons trying to leave or find the loved ones they had been separated from.

"Harry, m'boy..." Dumbledore's voice was the last thing he heard before he flopped to the ground, the darkness finally consuming him.


	7. Chapter 7

_**BIRTHDAY UPDATE TIME!** _Today, August 27, is my birthday (only a select few of you will know exactly how old I am today), so I survived another year of life! I'd like to dedicate this chapter to myself.

And you know what I'd like as a birthday present? Lots of reviews from my readers!

* * *

Roxy was currently in her room within the royal palace of Tir Nan Og, reading one of her spellbooks- one which taught basic combat magic for fairies.

Once she'd finished, she put away the book and sat at one of the windows, which had a gorgeous view of the Queendom. The sun had not yet risen so she enjoyed the pre-dawn atmosphere of the birds just waking up and a cool, gentle breeze.

"I wonder how Harry's enjoying his holiday. He said that he was going back to England, but that it would be a risky move and..." She sat up straight.

"Ever since that interview that Aunt Nebula gave to that _Daily Prophet_ newspaper, Stephania has been sending her copies every day. Maybe there's news of him. Though when I hear him talk, it's probably best that there _isn't _news of him..."

She went to get herself ready for the day and left the room quickly, heading to her aunt's personal study.

"Good morning, Roxy. You're up rather early..." Nebula raised an eyebrow at her niece as she entered the room.

"I know, but I couldn't sleep. So I read one of my textbooks and even then I still couldn't fall asleep so my mind wandered off to thoughts of a friend of mine..." Roxy admitted.

"Which friend would this be that would keep you up?"

"Harry. He said that he was going back home to make sure that his friends were okay and to give them some gifts that I made to help keep them safe, but..."

"Harry Potter? The same young man known as the Boy-Who-Lived in the United Kingdom? I wasn't aware that you were such close friends with him..." Nebula put aside the book she had been reading.

"The very same one, though he hates that title. He's actually very sweet in person. But he said that it would be dangerous for him to go back at this time so I can't help but be worried and I decided to come down here to see if Stephania had sent over today's copy of the Daily Prophet if to see if there was any news of him and..."

Nebula chuckled. "Calm down, Roxy. I am sure he will be fine. He isn't the Boy-Who-Lived for nothing. But since you are so worried..." She raised her hand and a copy of that day's Daily Prophet appeared in her hand.

"I'll let you read today's copy first. I haven't read it yet so I have no idea what it says myself..." She handed it over.

Roxy unfolded it and gasped at the headlines, eyes wide.

_**Attack on Diagon Alley!**_

_**Harry Potter Returns!**_

_**You-Know-Who In Duel with Harry Potter!**_

"Harry is definitely _not_ okay!" Roxy handed the paper back to her aunt, who frowned even more as she read.

"It says here that he was in disguise in Diagon Alley yesterday fighting against the Death Eaters when he saw Dumbledore duelling Voldemort himself, dropped the disguise and intervened when it looked like Dumbledore might actually lose. He defeated him and sent him and a few of his minions somewhere in what's described here as a portal. He's currently being held in St Mungo's Hospital for treatment related to Severe Magical Exhaustion... After all they did to him, he still wanted to help them somehow..."

"I haven't known him for that long, but he is a good guy at heart despite some of the nastier spells he would have had to use! He'd feel terrible about having to do that! He'll hate being cooped up in that hospital place and if what he's told me about this Dumbledore guy is accurate, he'll try to keep him in the U.K.! We have to help him!" Roxy exclaimed.

"Roxy, we cannot just intervene in the matters of another country like that. As much as I do not like the idea of them, Voldemort and the Death Eaters have done nothing to our Queendom..." Nebula said sternly.

"But he abandoned them when they treated him badly! He didn't go back because he loves it there! He went back because he was a good friend and wanted to make sure that his friends Ron and Hermione were _safe!_" Roxy cried.

_"Roxy..."_ Nebula warned.

"Aunt Nebula, we have to save him! He won't want to be there! He likes it at Red Fountain and he thrives there! He made new friends in Magix, including me! We'll probably never get to see him again and he'd be very unhappy there! We have to do something! Please!" Roxy begged.

Nebula looked at her niece oddly. "It really means that much to you that Harry gets to return to Magix?" She asked.

"Yes! Harry is my best friend and even if he weren't, he doesn't deserve to be kept in a place he doesn't want to be in, just to be their puppet!" Roxy exclaimed.

Nebula sighed. "Very well then. I will contact Stephania and the other British fairies later. Perhaps we can come up with something to get him out of Britain and bring him here until school in Magix starts again. This will have to be planned very carefully though. I do not want to put strain between us and Britain so early after relations have started between us and especially as things are so volatile over there right now..."

"Oh thank you! Thank you Aunt Nebula! Thank you so much! You will not regret it and Harry will be so thankful to you! Thank you!" Roxy grinned as she hugged her aunt tightly.

"Okay, Roxy. Go for a walk around the palace or something. I need to set things in motion..." Nebula dismissed her niece and reached for her cell-phone on the desk next to her.

The phone rang a few times before an image of a tanned-skinned woman with wavy bronze coloured hair and olive green eyes appeared above it.

"Yes, Your Majesty? What do you require of me?" The woman asked.

"Stephania, I need a big favour. You see, my niece Roxy has apparently managed to become best friends with Harry Potter while they studied in Magix together and she is adamant that Harry will hate it if he is forced to stay which is highly likely given his status..." Nebula said.

"I see, Your Majesty. Would you like me to get in touch with some of the other British Fairies that I know and help him escape somehow? I do agree with your niece. Given the manner that he left in the first place, I don't really think I can blame him for leaving..." Stephania said.

"Can you do it?" Nebula asked.

"I believe so, Your Majesty, but it will take time to plan. We do want to execute it in a way that it doesn't look like we were involved and looks like he escaped on his own..." Stephania said.

"Do what you must, Stephania." Nebula commanded.

"I will, Your Majesty. Is there anything else you require? " Stephania asked.

"Just keep me updated on how things are going on helping Harry get out of Britain." Nebula said.

"Very well, Your Majesty. I will get to work on that immediately..." Stephania ended the call.

Nebula sunk back into her chair and put the cell-phone back on the desk she took it from.

_"Getting Harry Potter had better be as worth it as Roxy claims..."_

* * *

Harry felt extremely groggy and his eyesight was foggy as he slowly opened his eyes.

Where was he? He didn't recognize here. It wasn't his dorm at Red Fountain...

Then it all came back to him.

He was on Earth again.

He had come back to the United Kingdom to see Ron and Hermione again; to make sure they were okay; to give them gifts that he hoped would make them safer.

Diagon Alley had been attacked... Voldemort, Death Eaters...

He groaned. His head hurt too much to think anymore...

"Harry! You're awake!" He heard a voice and saw a mess of red hair... Who was it that he knew who had red hair again?

"R... Ron?" Harry groaned.

"Yeah, it's me, Harry. How are you feeling? Hermione just went to get the Healer..." Ron's voice said.

"Where are my glasses?" Harry felt around randomly for them, until they were shoved into his hands.

He slipped them on and blinked, his surroundings finally coming into focus.

"Where are we?" Harry looked around to see a hospital-esque surrounding and found himself in a hospital bed.

"You're in St Mungo's, Harry. Don't you remember? The... attack on Diagon Alley... You'd come to see Hermione and me and they just attacked out of nowhere... You fought... Saved lots of lives by being there, not just ours... Plus you used some mighty impressive magic to fight of You-Know-Who... Where'd you learn it?" Ron asked.

"Ron! Give him time to breathe!" Hermione said impatiently as she came through the door with a female Healer with chestnut brown shoulder-length straight hair behind her.

"Her... Hermione, how are... how are... things?" Harry asked slowly.

Hermione smiled sadly. "After that attack, McGonagall took me to my parents' house to... take some stuff that I thought I'd need. And I sorted out things that I would need to with my parents being... _dead_ and all..." She shed a few tears.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "How... How long have I been unconscious?" He asked, almost not wanting to know the answer.

"You've been out of it for a week, Harry..." Hermione looked as if she didn't want to answer.

"A... a... a... _week?_" Harry coughed.

"Okay, you two. I know you've been attached at the hip since your first year, but I really must tend to him now..." The Healer smiled gently at them, hazel eyes sparkling slightly.

"We'll be back as soon as we can, Harry!" Hermione said as she and Ron left.

"Alright then, Mr Potter. My name is Healer Andrina Springsteen and I'm the main Healer that's looking after you. I was a Ravenclaw in school, Pure-Blood, though my husband is a Muggle-Born Gryffindor..." She smiled.

"I'm sure your parents must have _loved_ that..." Harry said sarcastically.

"Oh no. They really do love him. Can't say the same for some of my other relatives but nobody cares about them anyway. But we're not here to talk about me. We're here to talk about you. How are you feeling?" Healer Springsteen asked.

"Like shit." Harry said. "Oh, sorry..."

"No, no, that's fine. I've heard worse." Healer Springsteen chuckled.

"Any questions for me before I start with your treatment today?" She asked.

"Yeah. When do I get out of this place?" Harry looked around restlessly.

"As soon as I can get you out of here. No doubt you want to get back to wherever it is you've been hiding from Dumbledore and friends..." She said.

"You got that right." Harry grumbled.

"Needless to say, that's going to be a tricky thing. Security around St Mungo's is higher than it has ever been before due to what happened nine days ago. I don't blame you for wanting to leave though. I believed yours and Dumbledore's word about You-Know-Who right from the beginning but I still don't like what I saw of him handling things. I would help you get away from his grasp if I could but I honestly don't know how..." Healer Springsteen said sadly.

She perked up suddenly. "Though we're here focusing on getting your physical and magical health back up to a proper standard so let's get back to working on that, shall we?" She smiled encouragingly at him.

* * *

"Welcome back, Harry."

Those damn sparkling blue eyes.

"It's good to have you back again, though I wish that the circumstances through which it happened had been better..." Dumbledore smiled down at him sadly.

"What do you want?" Harry asked grouchily.

"I merely wished to speak to you Harry..." Dumbledore said.

"There is nothing to speak about. I came back to make sure that Ron and Hermione were okay, Diagon Alley was attacked, lots of people died, I fought Voldemort, passed out and woke up here in St Mungo's nine days later. What else is there to say?"

"I was hoping you'd be willing to talk to me after all this time..."

"I haven't forgotten the past, Professor. While I don't think you were malicious, I think you and others could have done a whole lot better than you did." Harry frowned.

"I am aware of that Harry and I do apologise."

Harry almost felt sorry for Dumbledore at that moment, looking at the expression on the old wizard's face.

_Almost _being the key word in that previous sentence.

"What did you want to talk to me about? Get it over with so I can get out of here and get back to... where I was before. Somewhere far, _far _away from you." Harry narrowed his eyes at his former Headmaster.

"Where did you go when you left the Dursleys in July?" Dumbledore asked.

"The same Dursleys that you allowed to die? I had no love for them, but I didn't wish them dead. Weren't there supposed to be protections in place for them?" Harry asked.

"Alas, the protections failed when you no longer called Number Four Privet Drive home..." Dumbledore said sadly.

"And there was nothing in place in case that happened? You had to have know that I never considered that hellhole a real home and yet you left me there. Did you really think I would want to call it home forever? Or did that possibility just not occur to you?" Harry asked.

"I thought that Petunia would have had enough goodness in her heart to treat you as her own. Obviously I was wrong about that..."

"Yeah. Obviously you were." Harry said dryly.

"I must ask you again however: where did you disappear to when you left the Dursleys in July?" Dumbledore asked.

"I'm not going to tell you a thing about where I've been. All I'll say is that I like it much better there than I like it here." Harry folded his arms across his chest.

"Fine then. Ron and Hermione said that you gave them protective bracelets and communication mirrors. How did you acquire these?"

"I have my ways." Harry glanced at his own bracelet, which was still on his wrist. Thank goodness for the extra security charms that he'd asked Roxy to apply...

Dumbledore started to look irritated with him. "How is it that neither Ron or Hermione's bracelets can be removed? Or yours for that matter either?"

"They can't be removed unless the owner wants it off. My guess is that they didn't want to give the bracelets to you so its protective magic kicked in." Harry answered.

"Where did you learn such powerful magic? Like the spells you used in Diagon Alley? In all of my years, I have never seen a spell such as the one you used on Voldemort. What was it?"

"It was a spell that got rid of him temporarily. He'll make his way back and start killing people again eventually, I'm sure. I don't even know where I sent him and I don't really care..." Harry shrugged.

"It was a transportation spell then?" Dumbledore urged.

"Of a sort." Harry smirked.

Dumbledore sighed. "I suppose I won't get much more out of you now. I will try again later." He stood up and began to leave.

"You won't get much out of me later either!" Harry called out as Dumbledore shut the door behind him.

_"I wonder where that portal sent Voldemort..."_ Harry thought as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

He hated that Potter boy even more than before and he didn't even know that was possible.

Those were the first thoughts that came to him as Lord Voldemort and some of his Death Eaters climbed out of the Antarctic Ocean, chilled to the bone and teeth chattering.

Icicles hung from some of the Death Eaters' noses and ice crystals dotted their hair as they tried to shake out their cold water drenched robes in vain.

He was just about to kill Dumbledore and Potter had intervened, actually putting up a decent fight _and_ using that strange magic on him.

What infuriated him even more was that he didn't know what it was or how to cast it.

An unfortunate penguin decided to wander by just then on its way to a nearby lake and its life was snuffed out by an Avada Kedavra before it could reach the edge of the lake.

Voldemort screamed out in rage as he Apparated himself back to his lair and some of the Death Eaters followed suit.

The others?

Well if they were worth anything, they'd find their way back eventually.

All he knew was that his loathing towards Harry Potter had increased even more than it had before...

* * *

Healer Andrina Springsteen walked through Muggle London with her husband Isaac after her shift, telling him all she could about it.

"I tell you, that young man absolutely hated being there. He looked as if he wanted nothing more than to leave and get back to wherever it was he's been hiding all these months! I can't say I blame him..." Andrina said.

"I don't blame him either, the poor young man. After everything the year before with his godfather being innocent his whole time and being exonerated only after he died and You-Know-Who himself was seen in the Ministry, plus the way the Ministry had treated him and I heard that his Muggle relatives weren't exactly the most pleasant of people either. I daresay he's not grieving too much about their deaths..." Isaac said, frowning.

"Dumbledore wants me to... _keep him for observation. _He doesn't need that much observation now! In a few days he should be all ready to leave! I'll bet that Dumbledore will try to steer him back to Hogwarts..." Andrina said disdainfully.

"How come he hasn't tried to get away from St Mungo's yet?" Isaac asked.

"His magic isn't fully healed. He used so much power fighting back in Diagon Alley that it literally almost drained the life out of him. He could barely handle it. He's lucky to be alive!" Andrina exclaimed.

As they were about to turn a corner, Adrina heard a voice call out to her- a voice she hadn't heard in years.

"Andrina! Andrina Lawrence, is that you?"

A woman around her age approached her, grey streaked black hair billowing behind her in the wind.

"Wait... who are... Juliana? Juliana Ramsey, is that _you?_"

Isaac stood to a side, looking puzzled as his wife greeted this strange woman.

"It's me, Juliana! Andrina, I never ever thought I'd see you again!"

"Me either since you disappeared all those years ago! My last name is Springsteen now though since I married this wonderful man right here!" Andrina pulled Isaac over.

"Nice to meet you, Isaac. I knew Rina here when were much younger women." Juliana chuckled.

"Same here, I suppose..." Isaac said, still not sure what to think of this strange woman.

A strange expression formed on Juliana's face, looking as if she had just remembered a very important fact.

"Andrina... could we talk somewhere... private? It's very important that I do..." She said in a strange tone.

Andrina raised an eyebrow. "Why?" She asked suspiciously.

"It's about Harry..."

Andrina and Isaac tensed. "Harry _who?_" She fingered her wand in her inside coat pocket.

"Harry Potter of course. I know where he disappeared to all those months ago and apparently a very important person there knows what has happened to him and wishes to help him escape Dumbledore's clutches..." Juliana said cautiously.

"Isaac?" Andrina looked at her husband questioningly.

"We can take her back to the house..." He said. "But you try anything and we won't hesitate to..."

Juliana's eyes wandered to where she knew he was keeping his wand.

"I wouldn't dream of it. After all, your kind of magic can hurt fairies too..." Juliana smiled as she watched Andrina's and Issac's expressions of shock form on their faces.

* * *

"So basically you want me involved in a conspiracy to get Harry Potter out of St Mungo's and to Tir Nan Og because Princess Roxy wants it?" Andrina raised an eyebrow at Juliana (who was in her fairy form to prove that she was indeed a fairy earlier) and a projection of Stephania on Juliana's cell-phone.

"Precisely. Juliana read a copy of the Daily Prophet that said that you were the Chief Healer in charge of Harry Potter and recognized you, saying that you were friends before she along with the rest of us Earth Fairies were imprisoned by the Wizards of the Black Circle..." Stephania said.

"It was completely coincidental though. I mean, how was I supposed to know where to find you in big old London? And when I first saw you, I didn't even remember the Healer bit at first. I was just thinking that I finally saw an old friend that I hadn't seen in years!" Juliana exclaimed.

"Yeah. I had wondered why you had just suddenly disappeared, but now I know..." Andrina remarked dryly. "I want to help Mr Potter escape. After all my main concern is about the _patient's_ welfare, not certain other people's wants- which in fact, I am not entirely sure are legal..."

"You will help us then?" Stephania asked.

"I will, but what happens to me and my family if I am caught?" Andrina asked.

"Queen Nebula will provide asylum for you and yours if that happens. I discussed the possibility of bringing in trusted wand-carriers to help us with her and brought that up..." Stephania said.

Andrina looked at her husband, who smiled and nodded. "Very well. I will help you to help Princess Roxy by helping Harry Potter. What do you need me to do?"

* * *

Damn Dumbledore.

Damn him to deepest pits of hell.

He was supposed to be _recovering _and that bloody old man had to go and throw something like this at him.

Damn Horcruxes. Why did Voldemort have to go create Horcruxes to tie his already damned soul to the Earth?

And six of them? _Six? __**Really?**_ Wasn't that a bit much?

Oh wait. Nothing is ever a_ bit _much when it came to Voldemort...

"So before he can be killed, all of them must be destroyed..." Dumbledore explained. "That's why I need you to stay here. It's for the Greater Good, Harry. We must put aside our own desires occasionally."

"Why do you need me in particular to participate in your Horcrux Hunt? There's nothing in the rules that says that I have to be the one to destroy Voldemort's Horcruxes. It just say that I have to be the one to destroy _him..._"

"Three Horcruxes have already been destroyed. The Diary which you destroyed in the Chamber of Secrets at the end of your Second Year, the Gaunt Ring that I found shortly before your... _disappearance _and the locket that I happened upon purely by chance when I visited Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. It is a good thing I did since our dear old friend Mundungus Fletcher was attempting to steal it, among other things..." Dumbledore frowned.

"I don't want him back in Sirius' house... well, _my house..._ ever again!" Harry snapped.

"I have already seen to that, Harry. The house is also no longer used for Order meetings since Sirius' untimely passing..."

"Professor Dumbledore, I am going to have to ask you to leave. I can sense that my patient Mr Potter is feeling _most_ distressed." Healer Springsteen in full Healer mode entered the room, looking annoyed.

"Ah. Andrina, how are you..." Dumbledore started but was cut off.

"Uh-uh. It's Healer Springsteen to _you. _Now _out._ This young man needs healing. _OUT!_" She did something Harry had never seen before and literally shoved Dumbledore out of the room.

"Wow." Harry said, looking surprised.

Healer Springsteen chuckled. "I guess I learned a thing or two from spending so much time in the Hospital Wing with Madam Pomfrey back in my Hogwarts days, though I heard that you spent a lot of time there too, Mr Potter..."

"Time I wish I hadn't spent there..." Harry grumbled.

"Don't worry about that now. You'll soon be out of here, don't you worry. Then you'll be back in Magix in no time..."

Harry sat up so suddenly that his glasses fell off. "What? I- how do you know about Magix?" He sputtered.

"Everyone in the Wizarding World knows about Magix now, Harry." Healer Springsteen chuckled. "As for how I know about _you _specifically being there, it's amazing how small the universe is. I _happened_ to run into an old friend who _happened_ to be an Earth Fairy herself who _happened_ to be part of a plot to get you out of here because a certain Princess Roxy _happened _upon a copy of the Daily Prophet that told about the incident in Diagon Alley..." She explained the situation properly and handed Harry back his glasses, still amused at his current expression.

"Roxy... she wants to help me get out of here? She wants to risk her Queendom's relationship with Magical Britain to get _me_ out of here?" Harry said in awe.

"She does indeed. You have a real friend in her, it seems..." Healer Springsteen smiled.

"But... how is she going to get me out of here?" Harry asked.

"You're set to be discharged from St Mungo's tomorrow. Your... "money pouch" and your wand are in the bedside drawer. Quite unwise of Dumbledore to leave your wand there really. I suppose he didn't think you'd be able to escape from here, but given that you're Harry Potter, you've pretty much done the impossible several times over..." Healer Springsteen rolled her eyes.

"So..." Harry urged her on.

"After my shift is over, you are going to receive a very wonderful gift in the form of a plant that originates in Tir Nan Og, but was sent to you by Stephania pretending to be one of your many admirers. The plant is set to teleport you out of here at precisely midnight. Make sure it, as well as everything you wish to take with you is in your grasp. It will take you directly to Tir Nan Og, where you can spend some time with your very good friend before you head back to school in Magix." Healer Springsteen smiled.

Harry just stared at her in awe. "You are quite possibly the best medical professional I have ever come into contact with in any world."

"Thank you, Mr Potter." Healer Springsteen smiled even more.

"You can call me Harry."

"Thank you then, Harry. I'm afraid I must go and check on other patients now so I may not see you again. If that is the case..." She held out a hand to him and he took it, shaking.

"Good luck, Harry..."

* * *

"Dumbledore tells us that you're going back to Hogwarts next term. Is that true?" Ginny asked.

She, Ron, Hermione, Neville and Luna were all crowded around Harry's bed having somehow (Harry suspected that Healer Springsteen had something to do with it) circumvented hospital rules limiting the amount of visitors that a patient could have at once.

"I don't know if he's hitting the Firewhiskey too much, but I have no intention of ever returning to Hogwarts. Sorry guys." Harry said.

"We'd miss you, but we understand..." Neville smiled weakly, rubbing a scar across his cheek that he'd gotten fighting Bellatrix idly.

"After this, I think that Dumbledore's Army needs to be restarted at Hogwarts, though I think a name change is in order..." Harry said.

"Uh-huh... Harry, what is this plant? I don't think I've ever seen it before..." Neville gestured to the blood red flower with diamond shaped petals that stood up above a mess of vines with heart shaped leaves.

"I got it as a gift from someone." Harry shrugged. "Anyway, about that defence club..."

"We'll get to work on that, Harry. We promise. I have a personal thing against Voldemort myself now..." Hermione growled.

"We all do to some extent..." Luna nodded sagely, though Neville didn't miss the steely look in her eyes.

"I'm going to get out of this place and go back to where I was before. Ron and Hermione know how to contact me if need be..." Harry said.

"Not that I don't want you to leave if you're unhappy here mate, but... how do you plan on escaping St Mungo's with all the security around it?" Ron raised an eyebrow.

"I'm Harry Potter. I do the impossible." Harry chuckled and the atmosphere in the room lightened a bit as everyone else chuckled too.

"But seriously, I'm getting out of this hellhole and I don't think I'll be coming back for a visit any time soon after what happened with my last visit..." Harry grumbled.

"No one blames you, Harry." Luna smiled at him.

Just then a nurse with significantly less professionalism than Healer Springsteen had displayed barged in.

"Okay all of you. Get out. Potter here needs to get some rest and visiting hours are over. Plus all of you aren't even supposed to be in here at once. GET OUT!" She bellowed.

"Sheesh, woman. You really could do with a Cheering Charm or something. Bye Ha-"

Ron was cut off when the nurse shoved him out and slammed the door behind them.

"Some bedside manners that woman has..." Harry rolled his eyes.

* * *

Harry chuckled to himself as he got ready to leave, changing into some clothes he had tucked into what Healer Springsteen had called his "money pouch" but what was really a bag with a Bottomless Holding Charm on it.

He glanced up at the clock on the opposite wall. Ten minutes to midnight.

Good. He was ready.

He shoved the bag into a pocket, adjusted his glasses, grabbed his wand and held the plant in his other arm.

One minute to midnight...

Thirty seconds to midnight...

Ten seconds to midnight...

All of a sudden, he felt a jerking sensation reminiscent of a Portkey as he disappeared from his private room at St Mungo's.

Seconds later, after all the swirling colours and disorienting feeling had disappeared from his head, he found himself standing in front of the Queen of Tir Nan Og herself, Queen Nebula.

He immediately rushed to bow.

"Queen Nebula, I... You don't know how grateful I am to you for your help. It's an honour to meet you, I..." Harry rushed.

"Arise, young man." Nebula chuckled and Harry did as he was told.

"Welcome to Tir Nan Og. My niece Roxy seemed to think it important that we get you out of the U.K. so my fairies formed a plan to do so and obviously it has worked..." She said.

"I must remember to thank her..." Harry said fervently.

Nebula chuckled again. "It is late and I daresay you would like some sleep, as Roxy herself is having now. You may see her in the morning at breakfast. Come. I will show you to your room myself..." Nebula motioned for him to follow her and he did.


	8. Chapter 8

"Morning, Artu..." Roxy stretched and yawned as she got out of bed that morning.

"Morning, Roxy..." Artu yawned as well, getting out of his dog bed slowly.

She went to the bathroom to get cleaned up for the morning and then sat at her window in the royal palace, just enjoying the view.

Her mind began to wander off again. _"I wonder if Aunt Nebula managed to do anything for Harry. It's been over a week now..."_ she thought.

She shook her head to clear it and her stomach rumbled.

"I guess it's time for us to get something to eat, isn't it?" She smiled down at her canine familiar.

"It is. I could really do with some breakfast myself!" Artu agreed.

"To the dining hall then!" Roxy cheered as she led the way through the twists and turns of the place.

When she got there, her mother and her father were already there.

"Good morning, Roxy. You're up earlier than usual..." Morgana smiled.

"Yeah... Artu and I were hungrier than usual so we came down for an early breakfast. What else can I say?" Roxy shrugged.

She sat down next to her father and was immediately attended to by one of the waitstaff on standby.

"I really must thank you all for getting me here. Really. I'm so grateful." A familiar male voice made Roxy sit up even straighter than she already was.

"You're welcome. Now the dining hall is this way so she may be here- if she got up early this morning, that is..." Roxy heard her aunt's voice.

She slowly began to eat her porridge.

As soon as her aunt entered the room, with Harry behind her, the spoon she was holding paused halfway between the bowl and the porridge.

Stephania and an unfamiliar fairy entered behind them and took seats at the table, calling out greetings to her.

It was then that she snapped out of her apparent trance.

"Harry? Is that you?" She asked slowly as Harry sat directly across from her.

"In the flesh. I really have to thank you for asking your aunt to get me out of that... place..." Harry smiled at her, feeling extremely grateful.

"No problem!" Roxy smiled back.

Nebula, Morgana, Rick, Stephania and the fairy that Roxy was unfamiliar with kept glancing between the two.

"Oh Harry! This is my mother Morgana..." Roxy gestured to her. "And my father Rick..." She patted her father's shoulder.

"It is nice to meet you, Mrs and Mrs Klaus..." Harry said politely.

"It is nice to meet you as well, Harry. How did you come to meet our daughter?" Morgana asked, gesturing to herself and Rick.

"We met just after I first left Britain in a shopping mall in Magix. I was just exploring and happened upon Roxy, who was trying to ditch Stella who had taken her clothes shopping..." Harry smiled at the memory.

Everyone at the table chuckled, well aware of Princess Stella of Solaria's infamous shopping sprees.

"Roxy, you already know Stephania, but this is Juliana Ramsey. She's one of the British Fairies that helped us get Harry out of Britain..." Nebula pointed out the fairy Roxy didn't recognize.

"Pleased to meet you, Ms. Ramsey. I really don't know how to thank you with helping Harry..." Roxy trailed off.

"The pleasure is mine, Princess. I am glad I could help." Juliana smiled at the younger fairy and at Harry as she glanced between the pair.

The breakfast passed normally, with only the occasional chat between mouthfuls of food.

When Roxy and Harry finished, she stood up.

"Aunt Nebula, Mom, can I show Harry around?" She asked.

"I have no problem with it..." Morgana shrugged.

"Go on ahead, dear..." Nebula dismissed them.

After they were gone, Nebula turned to Juliana. "Juliana, did you... _see_ anything concerning them?"

Juliana thought for a moment. "I am an Empath, not a fortune teller, so I can't see a definite future, but studying the emotive magic between them as they interacted... The possibility is there, Your Highness. It is up to them whether or not they see it..."

"I am not ready for this at all..." Rick grumbled.

"Well she _is _sixteen years old dear. This was going to come eventually..." Morgana turned to him.

"It doesn't mean I have to like it..." He said.

"May I speak?" Stephania asked.

Nebula and Morgana nodded.

"Thank you. What I have seen of that young man, Harry Potter... He seems like a decent young man. Articulate enough, rather polite, the fame of being the Boy-Who-Lived back in Britain does not seem to have gone to his head... All around, he seems like a very good young man." Stephania said.

"May I?" Juliana asked.

After she got permission, she too gave her opinion on the matter. "He seems like a good enough young man to me as well and that is without me trying to pick up on his emotions during this whole thing. I spoke to the Healer who was in charge of him at St Mungo's and she says he was a very nice young man, polite and determined to get back to Red Fountain and continue his studies when she was with him." Juliana said.

"Besides dear, nothing is set in stone. It is not as if they are going to get married tomorrow..." Morgana told her husband.

_"Maybe not tomorrow, but the potential __**is**__ there for him to be her future Consort..."_ Juliana thought to herself.

* * *

"Hey girl..." Harry released Hedwig from her cage into the Tir Nan Og air.

"It's about time you came to get me from that place! I was wondering if you had abandoned me there!" Hedwig huffed.

"Of course not. I'd never abandon you. It's just I got a little... _caught up_ when I went back to Britain..." Harry said.

"You're just lucky I like you so much. That aviary you left me at in Magix took decent care of me, but I still prefer being with you." Hedwig said.

"I'm glad you do." Harry chuckled.

He, Roxy and their respective pets were out exploring Tir Nan Og after a brief stop in Magix to retrieve Hedwig, who he had left behind there.

"So, I've given you the royal tour of the royal palace, so I'll just take you around the island now!" Roxy said, gesturing around them.

"That sounds fantastic. Where do we go first?" Harry asked.

"We could go up into the mountains, go by the lake, the beach, the forests..." Roxy counted off the various possible destinations on her fingers.

"How about the mountains? I've never actually been able to visit any..." Harry said.

"Really? You've never been hiking, camping or anything like that?" Roxy raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"No. The Dursleys were never inclined to take me on any sort of trips with them- unless it was to Kings Cross Station to get rid of me for the whole school year..." Harry frowned. "That was their favourite trip to take with me..."

Roxy looked at him, frowning slightly.

"Harry, if you ever need someone to talk to about that time in your life I will be here to listen if you want me to..." She said, looking him directly in the eyes.

Harry looked right back. "I... I guess you're right. You're my closest friend in this whole new world of magic and if I can't trust you now after you started the process of getting me out of Britain then I don't..."

He took a deep breath as he, Roxy and the animals made their way towards the mountainous region.

"This isn't easy for me, mind you. It took ages for Ron and Hermione to get even part of this out of me and I haven't told them everything about my shitty life with them..." Harry admitted.

"You don't have to tell me everything at once, Harry. Bit by bit does it..." Roxy stopped to hold his hands in hers and smiled slightly.

Harry smiled back. "I guess that could work..."

* * *

"How could he possibly have managed to get away?" Dumbledore asked as he stood in what _used_ to be Harry's private room at St Mungo's.

"I haven't the foggiest idea." Healer Springsteen said, smiling to herself.

Them, along with Lupin, Madam Bones and Minister Scrimgeour stood in the room.

"Well, he _has_ been doing the impossible lately..." Lupin said.

"He's been doing the impossible since he was a toddler, we all know that. But how did he manage to escape from a highly secured room in a highly secured hospital immediately after recovery from a severe case of Magical Exhaustion?" Madam Bones wondered.

"We could check the magical signatures around the room to see if anyone managed to take him away. It's possible that Death Eaters managed to infiltrate the hospital even after all this time..." Dumbledore said.

"We can do that. Healer Springsteen, can you bring the Chief Healer up here? We'll need him to do that..." Scrimgeour turned to her.

"I most certainly can, though I highly doubt that you will find Potter anyway. The way he spoke to me he made it sound that if he ever managed to escape, he'd made sure he wasn't found by you lot. That's no secret and I can't really say I blame him. Still, I'll go fetch Healer Hopkins..." She left the room.

"You're losing a lot of support over all of these debacles involving Mr. Potter, Dumbledore. Are you sure it's wise to keep trying to detain him like this? Even if it were legal?" Madam Bones narrowed her eyes at the Hogwarts headmaster.

"It's best that he remains at Hogwarts to continue his magical education and remain safe now more than ever, especially after that incident in Diagon Alley..." Dumbledore said.

"With all due respect, Dumbledore, it _is_ legal to allow him to discontinue his Hogwarts education after OWL's if he desires to and he has. Plus judging by the skills he displayed fighting You-Know-Who in Diagon Alley, he certainly has not been slouching off when it comes to practicing magic. As long as he is safe wherever he is, I am happy." Lupin said.

"I'm inclined to agree with Mr. Lupin, Dumbledore. Wherever he is, he obviously was determined to get back there and You-Know-Who doesn't know where that is because if he had, he might be dead by now. So I take that to mean that he has found a safe place to hid from both You-Know-Who and you. All I'm here for is to make sure that Death Eaters did not get him." Madam Bones.

"But Amelia..." Dumbledore said.

"As much as I want him back here fighting You-Know-Who with us, trying to detain him like this isn't going to work. No. We'd have to make him _want_ to come back." Scrimgeour frowned.

"I have to leave, Dumbledore. I'm supposed to meet Tonks and some of the others to search for Harry..." Lupin said, leaving the room.

Dumbledore sighed. Things just hadn't been going right for him lately at all...

* * *

"Wow. And I thought I had difficulties in my life..." Roxy said. "But nothing came close to that. Not even when the Wizards of the Black Circle had kidnapped me. Gantlos taunted me..." Roxy glanced back at Artu, who was sniffing at some flowers around a nearby tree in the forest they were in. "But they never actually _tortured_ me..." She shuddered at the thought and stretched out in the grass she was lying down in.

"Voldemort was rather fond of his taunts and speeches. If he'd stopped with the taunts and speeches and just got down to the business of trying to kill me, he might have actually succeeded. Needless to say, I'm actually glad for the speeches in a way..." Harry chuckled dryly, sitting against a tree next to her.

"And you never knew your parents either... At least I had my dad and I eventually got back my mother with the Winx Club's help but no one can bring back the dead. Not even Bloom's Dragon Flame can do that. If she could have, Nabu wouldn't have stayed dead..." Roxy held her head down.

"You know, sometimes... I blame _myself_ for that. I mean, if it wasn't for me, the Winx would have never had to come to Earth in the first place..."

"No, you _don't_ blame yourself for that. I know how it feels to blame yourself for someone's death. Well, a lot of deaths, actually..." Harry scratched the back of his head nervously.

"I know it's not my fault, but you can't help it sometimes, you know? I mean, you were _there,_ you could have done _something_ instead of just _standing there..._"

Harry nodded. "That was the case with me and Cedric and with my Godfather in the Ministry debacle. Voldemort had Cedric killed because he was just there... We hadn't even had time to adjust to the unfamiliar surroundings yet and he and the rat just show up out of _nowhere. _I can never forget that. _Kill the spare..._" He shuddered.

"And if I hadn't fell for Voldemort's false visions planted in my head, Sirius would still be here. You and Artu would have liked him, I think. Animagus form aside, he actually was good with animals and despite everything he'd been though, he managed to be cheerful and happy enough..."

Roxy nodded. "I think I would have liked him too. Do you think he would have liked me?"

Harry smiled. "I think he would..."

Roxy's stomach grumbled. "I think we should head back to the palace for lunch..."

"I'm going back to the palace for lunch. I never thought I'd be able to say that..." Harry chuckled.

"Well you can now..." Roxy smiled.

"Hedwig! We're going back to the palace for lunch! You know the way back, don't you?" Harry called up into the trees where Hedwig had been surveying them for the past few minutes.

"I do, Harry. I know how to find my way to and from a lot of places. I delivered mail for you when you were at Hogwarts and I didn't get lost, did I? _Do I know the way back indeed..._" Hedwig scoffed.

Harry snorted.

"When we come back out, can you show me your Firebolt?" Roxy asked as she leaned down to give Artu a belly rub.

"I'll do better than that. I'll fly it and let you have a ride. How does that sound?" Harry asked.

"Sounds like fun!" Roxy smiled.

"Then it's set. I'm giving you flying lessons- broomstick style, that is..." Harry smiled back.

* * *

Harry sat in the room he had been assigned to after lunch.

Hedwig still had not returned, so he was sitting alone.

Leafing through a copy of Quidditch Through The Ages, he looked at a few moves that he wanted to show Roxy later.

_Roxy._

She was... something special, he knew. He'd only known her for a few months, yet they'd become good friends in such a short time. She'd helped him escape St Mungo's. She didn't judge him when he told her about some of his troubled past. She was the closest friend he had made in Magix.

He smiled at the thought.

Plus she _was_ rather pretty...

He shook his head.

Was he starting to actually _fancy_ her?

He didn't know too much about girls after all. His experience with Cho in his last year at Hogwarts had been nothing much of a disaster.

Yeah, he didn't like to think about that...

But... could he try to ask Roxy out sometime? Was he ready to ask another girl out?

And this was no ordinary girl in any world.

She was a _princess._

There was no royalty in the Wizarding World... How does one ask out a _princess?_

She was a very nice princess and a good friend to him but still, a _princess _and the heiress to the throne of Tir Nan Og at that...

Plus he was pretty sure that Queen Nebula and Roxy's mother Morgana could turn him into something most unpleasant if they didn't like him dating her...

He shuddered at the thought.

Where was his Gryffindor courage when he needed it?

Surely it couldn't hurt him to at least try to get a feel on how Roxy felt about him.

He took a deep breath and sighed.

Retrieving his bag with the Bottomless Holding Charm on it, he packed Quidditch Through The Ages, his old Gryffindor Quidditch robes (just to show her) and some souvenirs that he still had left from the Quidditch World Cup.

Changing into grey track pants and a black t-shirt and tucking his wand into the wand holster on his arm, he plucked up his Gryffindor courage.

When he saw Roxy later, he was going to try and at least find out if there was a chance of her fancying _him._

* * *

Roxy sat in the royal library with her mother after lunch.

"So dear, do you have any plans for this afternoon?" Morgana asked as they looked through a shelf.

"Yeah. I'm going back out with Harry again. He promised to show me his Firebolt..." Roxy said, sinking into a chair with a small book summarising the various regions of Tir Nan Og and what they were like.

"His Firebolt?" Morgana asked raising an eyebrow.

"It's a broomstick. Broomsticks are still all the rage in Earth's Wizarding communities apparently. His Firebolt is supposed to be one of the best there is. He's even going to tell me about this sport called Quidditch that they play on broomstick. He only gave me a very basic summary of it before, but it sounds like fun..." Roxy smiled.

"Uh-huh..." Morgana regarded her daughter for a moment.

"Roxy, do you like this... Harry Potter?" She asked.

Roxy almost dropped her book, startled.

"Like him _how, _mom?" She asked suspiciously, giving her mother an odd look.

"Well the two of you do seem to get along quite well, plus there is the fact that you actually asked your aunt to help him get out of Britain- something which would not be done lightly for just anyone..." Morgana said.

"Yes, but he's just a friend, Mom. Nothing more..." Roxy said.

"But he could be..." Morgana smiled at her daughter.

"No he can't. He's just a friend. My _best_ friend. He's a really sweet guy, but I don't think I could ever actually date him..." Roxy said.

"If you say so. Just know that when you _do_ start dating, your aunt will be quite ready to use the war side of her powers to keep any potential suitors in line and I would back her up with my own magic. Not to mention your father. He may be non-magical, but he can be pretty lethal in his own right and I'm sure that wizards aren't immune to bullets." Morgana chuckled.

"Mother!" Roxy turned red, sinking down into her chair.

Morgana simply laughed even more.

Roxy huffed, got up and replaced the book she had been reading and left the library, her mother's laughter still ringing in her ears.

Once she was back in her room, she glanced at the clock on the wall.

"Only an hour to get ready? Wow..." Her eyes widened.

"Getting ready to go out with Harry again, Roxy?" Artu glanced up from his pet bed.

"Yes. He promised to show me a little of that Wizarding sport he calls Quidditch. You won't be able to come this time since we'll probably be spending most of our time in the air..." Roxy grabbed some clothes out of her walk-in closet and dashed into the bathroom.

_"I don't mind staying behind._ _I trust Harry with you..." _Atru thought amusedly.

Once in the bathroom, Roxy went through the random clothes she had picked out.

She settled on a pair of khaki shorts, a white tank-top, black fingerless gloves and sneakers.

_"Okay Roxy. Is there a chance that Harry might actually like you?"_ She thought as she brushed her hair and pulled it up into a high ponytail.

_"Well, maybe. He seems like a nice guy and he might be into me. But do I like him?"_ She wondered.

_"He's a great guy, but what have I done compared to what he did? He's been through a lot more than I have and did a lot more remarkable things than I have..."_ She frowned.

She shook those thoughts out of her head.

_"There's only one way to find out if he might like me, I suppose..."_ She smiled at the thought.

She glanced at the clock once she was out of the bathroom.

"Better hurry if I want to make it there on time! Bye Artu! I'll see you later!" She called back to him as she ran through the door.

* * *

Harry and Roxy stood in the grass surrounding a giant lake as he explained to her in further detail about broomsticks and Quidditch.

"This is quite possibly the best looking broomstick I have ever seen." Roxy held the Firebolt in awe.

Harry chuckled. "My Gryffindor housemates had pretty much the same reaction when I first got it..."

"I can imagine. And you said that this particular broomstick was used in this Quidditch World Cup thing, right?" Roxy handed it back to him.

"That's right. It helped me to victory quite a few times since I got it." Harry smiled.

"Okay then. Why don't you show me some of your moves now?" Roxy leafed through Quidditch Through The Ages.

"Will do. And then you're going to come for a ride with me." Harry mounted the broomstick.

Roxy laid back against a tree, watching him.

"That was so cool! And you do that with people trying to smack those Bludger things at you _and _having to find that tiny Golden Snitch thing?" Roxy said, looking and sounding rather impressed as Harry landed.

"That's right. Trust me, it isn't as easy as I make it look..." Harry smiled.

He actually managed to impress Roxy simply by doing one of the things he loved best.

He hadn't even had that much time to practice since he went to Magix because of his studies at Red Fountain so he had worried that he'd be a little rusty, but it turned out he needn't have worried at all...

"So Harry, how do you mount this thing?" She asked, eyeing the Firebolt in his hands.

"I'll have to get on it first like this..." Harry made the broomstick float at knee level and then got on at the front.

"You get on now." He gestured to the back.

Roxy did. "Okay, now what?"

"You'll have to hold onto me..." Harry said, and Roxy noticed the nervous tone in his voice.

He reached around and took Roxy's hands, slowly putting them around his waist.

"You actually feel rather... _nice_ to hold onto, Harry..." She said. "Are those muscles that I feel?"

_"Dang! Why didn't he have more girls chasing after him in Britain?"_ Roxy thought.

"Yeah, I guess. Playing Quidditch for your House and being a student at Red Fountain, especially under Cordatorta helps do that to you..." Harry felt himself turning red.

"And your hair... Don't ever cut it..." Roxy touched his hair, which was now just touching his shoulders slightly.

"Just for you, I won't." Harry smiled, although he was still blushing. "Ready to go?"

"Yep!" Roxy held onto him tighter.

"Alright then. Off we go!" He kicked off and took to the sky.

"This is really different to flying on wings, that's for sure!" Roxy exclaimed as she took in the view below.

"I can imagine that it would!" Harry smiled.

_"Well, she does seem to like spending time with me so far..." _He thought.

After a few minutes of calm flying he looked back at her.

Her ponytail was flapping behind her in the wind and she was smiling a smile that made her look even prettier than she already was.

He had to take a chance. Just be sure.

"Hey Roxy, you ready to try any riskier moves?" He called.

"Sure! Sounds like fun!" She called back.

"Okay. If you say so!" He said, a grin forming on his face.

He sped up suddenly, making Roxy scream out in surprised and delight.

He did a few loops and twirls in the air, flew across the treetops at a low enough level that their feet brushed the trees and turned back, flying above the lake.

He flew down towards the lake and at the last minute pulled up before they could hit the water.

He did a few more twists and turns above the lake, but on the last one he did, he made a mistake and the broomstick careened into the water- with him and Roxy still on it.

As the two of them waded out, he kept apologising to Roxy. "I don't even know what happened there, Roxy! I just... I don't know!"

Roxy giggled. "Don't worry about it Harry. In fact, that was actually kind of fun!" She giggled again.

Harry raised an eyebrow as they flopped down on the edge of the lake, him rolling aside the drenched broomstick.

"You thought that was fun?" He asked incredulously.

"Sure! It's not like we got hurt and your broomstick will be fine, won't it?" Roxy asked.

"Yes, but _still..._"

"Don't worry about it." Roxy insisted. "I had fun today!"

They burst out laughing.

"I guess it _was_ fun, wasn't it? And like you said, no one got hurt, so no harm done, right?" Harry agreed.

He felt so comfortable around her. Girls back at home would probably be swearing at him and threatening to curse him, but not her...

He looked at her.

She was looking back at him, smiling.

Should he take the chance?

He would never know otherwise, right?

He moved closer to her and she didn't move away.

"Roxy?" He asked.

"Yes?" She smiled at him.

"I... I had a really fun time with you today..." He said.

"I did too, Harry. We should totally do this again sometime..." Roxy said.

"I agree."

And with that, he leaned in and kissed her.

Roxy didn't pull away from him. In fact, she was kissing him back, even throwing her arms around his shoulders and pulling him closer to her.

After a while, they broke apart.

"Well, that was... _nice..._" Harry said awkwardly.

"Not bad at all." Roxy agreed.

After a few seconds, Roxy leaned in for another kiss.

And for those precious few moments, nothing else mattered.


	9. Chapter 9

"So how did you girls spend your break?" Krystal flopped into a chair in the living room of their dorm.

"It was pretty okay. Our parents took us back to Lucis for the break and we went shopping, to the beach, camping... It was pretty fun!" Athena smiled.

"She's right. And the bookstores and such there are pretty good, though not as good as the ones on dad's home planet of Romulea..." Anahita added.

"I would imagine since they're the Literature planet and all that..." Krystal said.

"Yeah... Our parents were off on their own vacation for a bit of the break so Nephele and I had the house all to ourselves. It feels so much different when your parents aren't home..." Rainer grinned.

"Any wild parties?" Roxy asked.

"You know it!" Rainer grinned. "Of course the house was never wrecked or anything like that but the party was hot! You guys should have come!"

"A party hosted by the Del Mar sisters? The only thing I think I wouldn't want to do even more is go shopping with Stella _and_ Krystal at once..." Roxy snorted.

"Hey! There's nothing wrong with a good shopping spree every once in a while!" Krystal said defensively.

"Aren't you supposed to be part of the nobility of Andros? How do you even pull off something like that without your parents' approval, _Lady_ Rainer?" Athena wondered.

"Well, they _did_ say that we could have a few friends over. They just didn't say _under what circumstances_ we could have them over." Rainer smirked. "Needless to say that they were a little miffed about it, but it was totally worth it..."

"Trust you to find the loophole there..." Anahita said.

"Of course. Little tricks like that are all a part of being nobility so they _should_ be proud of me. Nephele invited her roommates Tammy and Rajani and some of our Androsian friends. I would have invited you all but you were all busy with your own plans..." Rainer said.

"I wish I could have come. It sounds like so much fun..." Krystal said wistfully.

"Anyways, what about you, Roxy? What did you do over the break, huh?" Rainer turned her attention to the animal fairy.

"I went back to Tir Nan Og to get more familiar with the Queendom I'm supposed to rule in the future..." Roxy said, purposefully leaving out anything about Harry.

While she was sure the twins wouldn't give her any grief, Krystal and Rainer were another story entirely...

"Why am I getting the feeling that there's more to the story than getting to know the Queendom?" Anahita asked, raising an eyebrow.

"_Yeah... _Roxy, what's the deal? You're leaving something out..." Rainer said, sounding suspicious.

"If I leave out anything, it's none of your business." Roxy snapped.

"AHA! So you _are_ hiding something! Don't worry, Roxy, we'll find out what it is!" Krystal declared.

Roxy rolled her eyes. "I won't hear the end of it, will I?"

"With people like those two around, no you won't..." Athena thumbed Krystal and Rainer.

* * *

"How are things at Hogwarts?" Harry asked Ron and Hermione via his own magic mirror while sitting in his room alone.

"Well, the mood over here is a lot more tense since that attack..." Ron said as he and Hermione sat alone in the Gryffindor common room.

"Luna's been a little less... _quirky_ since the attack. Her father is still healing and she says he'll have a limp now that not even magic can fix..." Hermione said.

"What about Neville and Ginny?" Harry asked.

"Neville's as okay as one could get, I suppose. His grandmother had the protective spells around their house reinforced and apparently is looking at her properties to see which one would be best as a safe-house just in case..." Hermione said.

"Ginny's been a lot quieter since the fight. She doesn't seem to lose her temper as often as she used to and her Quidditch playing has been a bit off. I think she's still recovering from seeing all of that. We all are..." Ron said sadly.

"I can only imagine... Do I even want to know the full extent of what Voldemort and his pet Death Eaters did? I didn't have time to find out before I made my little escape, you see..." Harry said.

"Seventy-six deaths, one hundred and two serious injuries, forty-five relatively minor injuries last time we heard anything..." Hermione said.

Harry whistled. "Damn. That wanker did quite a bit of damage with his minions. I think I will be quite pleased when I finally get to end the bastard..."

Ron and Hermione looked at one another for a moment in mild shock.

"Harry? Are you actually so determined to face him down now? You really do sound like you'd like nothing more than to kill him with your bare hands..." Ron said, sounding nervous.

"Believe me, I'd like nothing more than to rip off his head with my bare hands and set his corpse ablaze by riding a dragon who'll help me with the fire part. The bastard's ruined enough lives as it is, including mine and yours in different ways so he deserves nothing less." Harry growled.

"I agree, but what are you doing to get ready for that moment when it comes? I know you don't really like or respect Dumbledore anymore but are you sure he wouldn't be the best person to help you... train?" Hermione asked.

"I don't need him trying to control my actions and how I go about things, Hermione. And as you saw in Diagon Alley, I'm not completely helpless. I really need to work on building my physical strength and the strength of my magical core though..." Harry thought aloud.

"How are you even doing that? Training, learning those new spells that everyone there saw?" Ron asked.

"I will tell you one day. I can't right now. Not with the way things are. I can't jeopardize... _certain things _in my life right now..." Harry said, thinking of Tir Nan Og and a certain Crown Princess associated with that Queendom.

"But..." Hermione started, but Harry cut her off.

"_I can't tell you now._ I've always told you a lot of things about my life so you know that the issue isn't that I can't trust you. It's certain people in Wizarding Britain around you that I can't trust. Don't you see that?" Harry said.

Ron sighed. "We get it, mate. You can't tell us because it could really screw up some things on both our ends. But you're our friend. You can't blame us for being concerned..."

"I know. I'm sorry, Ron, Hermione. I really wish I could say. I'm learning well here and I've met a lot of interesting people that I would like to introduce you to someday..." Harry smiled at the thought of the friends he had made in Magix and his budding relationship with Roxy.

"Does that include the mysterious female that made us these bracelets that helped save our lives?" Ron and Hermione each held up the arm that wore their Shield Bracelets.

"That's one question I'll answer for you directly: yes. She's one of the people the people I'd like you to meet and judging by what I've told her of you, she'd like the same." Harry smiled.

"Well, as long as you're safe, happy and keeping up with your magical education wherever you are..." Hermione smiled slightly.

"I wish I could say the same for you..." Harry said, somewhat sadly.

"It's not the most ideal environment, but we can survive it. We're tough. We've battled trolls, Acromantulas, survived a flying car crash and the Whomping Willow, haven't we? Not to mention what you've done on your own, Harry. We're tough. And when it comes time to take down You-Know-Who, you can count on us to be at your side." Ron declared.

Harry smiled. "I know. I really do miss you two you know..."

"We miss you too, Harry. When else are we going to get to make friends with a tiny little midget with messy black hair, giant glasses and a cool scar?" Ron joked.

"He's not so tiny anymore in case you haven't noticed, Ron. He came back looking much more buff than when he left and that long hair of his... Your mum would have a fit about that hair, judging by how she is with Bill all the time..." Hermione said. "The girls wherever you are must really be taking a liking to you now, wherever you are..."

_"You have no idea..."_ Harry muttered. "But one girl is good enough for me, thanks. Plus I think she and her relatives would do something really... _creative_ to me if I stepped out of line..."

Ron snorted in laughter and Hermione giggled.

"Anyway, I'll check in with you again some other time. I have things I need to go do now..." Harry said.

"Alright then, Harry. We'll see you!" They said just before Harry ended the communication.

"Harry, you do realize that our first class is in less than an hour and you're still in your pajamas, right?" Aki poked his head in the doorway, fully outfitted in his Red Fountain uniform.

"Yes, I know, Aki. I can be ready before then..." Harry swung his legs over the side of the bed and went to get ready.

* * *

"Hey Freida. It's been a while, hasn't it?" Harry said to his dragon as he approached her stable.

The dragon rumbled, looking grouchy.

"Don't be like that! I had some very important things to take care of and some... _unexpected events_ kind of delayed my return..."

Wait, was he actually making excuses for himself to a _dragon?_

Hagrid would be proud of him...

Cordatorta called the students around him outside the stables.

"Alright, young men. You spent the last semester learning the basics of dragon handling. Now it's time that you moved onto more advanced things." He paced up and down in front of them.

"Some of you can become Dragon Riders and learn to harness a dragon's magical energy in battle. After your Freshman year, you can continue to study more advanced courses in Dragon Handling if you desire. I do expect you all to pass this course of course whether you do highly in the theory portion, the practical portion or the best way: a combination of the two."

_"I'm going to have to pass the theory part with flying colours to pass at all. My dragon doesn't like me very much at all..."_ Darian whispered to Harry.

_"Tough luck for you..."_ Harry whispered back.

"Now, your dragons are going to be released so, have at it, men!" Cordatorta pressed a button which released the dragons one by one into the yard where each student went to greet theirs.

"Looks like we get to so some real work together today, huh? Feel up to it?" Harry reached up to scratch Freida behind the ears, who rumbled contentedly.

"Let's see how you're feeling. Anything wrong with your scales... It doesn't feel that way... Your ears felt okay when I checked them earlier... I'm guessing you're in top health, aren't you?" Harry grinned.

The dragon rumbled contentedly.

"Okay then. Do you think I could... well, you know... sit on your back at least? Cordatorta said that some of us might be able to become Dragon Riders..." He said, looking hesitant.

Freida lowered herself and folded in her wings.

"I'll take that as a yes then..." Harry smiled, climbing up.

_"Hm. It feels kind of nice up here... Definitely nicer than that wretched Hungarian Horntail..." _Harry thought.

He looked around and his classmates to see how they were doing.

Darian was backing off from his dragon who was looking at him with a most displeased expression on his face, Lucas was still examining his dragon closely and Aki was already on his and waved across at him.

"Well then, Miss. Do you fancy a little walk around the yard?" He reached up and rubbed her neck lightly.

Freida stood up, stretched her wings slightly and started to walk.

"Don't walk too fast, girl. I'm still getting used to riding on the back of a living, flying creature. Buckbeak was scary enough to fly on. I don't know what it would be like flying on a dragon unprepared..." Harry shuddered at the thought.

"Hey Harry! How's your dragon steed treating you?" Aki called as he moved closer on his own dragon.

"She's a pretty cool girl. We get along well enough and she seems to understand everything I say..." Harry half-shrugged.

"Yeah. Dragons aren't just "wild beasts" as a lot of people think they are. They can actually be rather intelligent and helpful if you treat them right. Isn't that right, Zeus?" Aki rubbed his dragon's ears lightly, who rumbled contentedly.

"You named your dragon too? Mine is Freida..." Harry said.

"Oh yeah. He seems to like the name too, so I've been calling him Zeus ever since..." Aki shrugged. "Anyway, I'm gonna take Zeus for a run around this place. See you after class!" He called over.

"Yep. See you..." Harry waved back.

Harry looked down at Freida, who was looking back up at him.

"Fancy a little run? Not too fast now. I don't have a saddle on you and I don't much fancy falling off and injuring myself. I've had quite enough injuries to last me for a lifetime, thank you very much..."

* * *

"Very good, Roxy! Keep up the shield for a little while longer!" Griselda was with Roxy in the middle of a large circular lecture hall, throwing energy blasts at her.

Roxy was transformed and her light green energy shield was up, deflecting golden brown blasts.

Her roommates were sitting in the curved seats along the walls with the other students who were all transformed, paying close attention and looking excited.

Roxy put more power into her shield, but she kept being shoved backwards.

She waved her hands and the shield glowed even brighter and deflected one of Griselda's blast so hard that it knocked the Professor off her feet.

Her eyes widened and she dropped the shield.

"Oh my gosh! Professor Griselda are you okay? She flew over to the other side of the stage.

"I'm fine, Roxy. Your shield is improving. Unlike last semester, I couldn't break it this time without plenty of effort on my part. Good job. You can go take a seat." Griselda sent her back to sit with the other students.

She took a seat next to Athena.

"That was a pretty good job, Roxy. I don't think I've _ever_ seen anyone's shields stand up to Griselda's magic before..." Athena complimented her.

"Thanks. It was a lot of hard work and my aunt really put my through my paces over the break..." Roxy said.

Griselda called Anahita next, so they began to pay more attention to the Professor.

Anahita's shield initially held out, but after a few more stronger blasts, her shield cracked, then shattered, sending the literature fairy skidding backwards on the edge of her heels, looking stunned.

Athena giggled at the expression on her twin's face.

"Alright girls. Your homework will be to do some research and write an essay on defensive charms. _Minimum_ 2,000 words and I want it by next Friday afternoon at 4pm." Griselda dismissed the class after she'd put everyone through their paces.

Roxy and her roommates de-transformed right before they reached the exit of the classroom.

"I'd better get cracking on that thing now before I forget it..." Krystal said.

"How does one _forget_ to do _Griselda's _homework?" Rainer looked at her incredulously.

"I don't know! Last semester when she gave us that essay to write on the capabilities of the basic level Winx transformation, I didn't remember a thing about it until the morning before it was due! I had to spend all my free time that day just throwing something together and hoping I'd pass!" Krystal exclaimed.

"_Did_ you pass?" Athena raised an eyebrow.

"I got a B minus..." Krystal pouted.

"That's still decent for something put together at the last minute though..." Anahita acknowledged.

"But I could have done so much better... You girls were more prepared. What did you get on that essay?" Krystal asked.

"A+." The twins said in unison.

"A-" Rainer said.

"A." Roxy answered.

"See? You girls did better because you didn't forget! Now I'm not going to forget. I'm heading to the library to get started on this thing. Who's coming with me?" Krystal asked.

"I didn't even know that you knew where or _what_ the library _was..._" Rainer said.

Roxy and the twins snickered.

"Ha, ha. Very funny, Rainer." Krystal narrowed her eyes at the Androsian fairy. "Are you all coming or not?"

"We're coming. We're coming. Don't worry about it!" Roxy said.

The girls went their separate ways once they reached the library except for Roxy and Athena, who had decided to work on their essays together.

"I find that having a study buddy helps you with your work, even if it's supposed to be an individual assignment. Anahita and I are always helping each other out. That's why we always get high grades..." Athena said as she reached for a book.

"That's not only it. You two have to be the smartest girls in our year. I mean, your parents come from two planets known for producing lots of highly intelligent people. You must have inherited _some_ of that intelligence from them after all and put it to good use..." Roxy helped her pick out some books and carry them over to a nearby table.

They talked quietly as they worked through the different books and theories and wrote their essays.

"Well, that went quicker than I had expected..." Roxy said as she looked through her finished essay about two hours later.

"You see? Having a study buddy _does_ work!" Athena said as she looked through her own essay.

"I wonder if having a study date works too..." Roxy smiled at the thought of her and Harry "studying" together.

Athena raised an eyebrow at her. "Roxy, is there something you're not telling us girls? Your roommates? Also known as the girls you'll most likely have to put up with throughout your entire duration of studies at Alfea?" She asked suspiciously.

"No, not at all!" Roxy said, starting to feel nervous.

"Roxy, you're a terrible liar. I can see right through you. Come. You can tell me what it is. I won't even tell Anahita and I usually tell her _everything._" Athena grabbed their essays and put them away in a folder in her bag.

"Athena, _give me my essay._" Roxy narrowed her eyes at the green-haired girl.

"Not unless you tell me what's up with you." Athena moved towards the exit of the library.

"I'm not telling you anything! Now give me back my essay!" Roxy exclaimed.

"Nope!" Athena took off suddenly, but Roxy gave chase, all the way back to their dorm room, getting incredulous stares from other student fairies all along their chase route.

"We're alone up here. _Now_ can you tell me what's up with you?" Athena asked, waving the folder casually.

Roxy sighed. "If I tell you, will you give me my essay back and not tell anyone else? _Especially _Krystal and Rainer?"

"Cross my heart and hope to have my wings ripped out." Athena flopped into a chair.

Roxy did the same in the chair next to her. "Well... You know on the first day back when I told you all that I had just went back to Tir Nan Og?"

"Yeah, of course I remember. That was only a few days ago. Why?" Athena asked.

"Well, Harry came over to visit and we spent some time together and... he kissed me." Roxy admitted.

"Well what's the problem? Don't you like him?" Athena asked.

"Yeah, I do like him! It's just that... we kind of decided to date each other quietly after that to see if we could really get something going and... I don't even know how this relationship stuff is supposed to work!" Roxy exclaimed.

"You'll figure it out eventually. People in relationships for the first time usually do that. I know I first felt that way when I started dating on the down low this school year..." Athena smiled.

Roxy sat up straight. "Really? Who?"

Athena smiled even broader. "Harry's roommate Aki. We decided to try it out just before we all left for break. I've only told my sister and well, now you..."

"Really? Oh wow... At least I've got someone to talk about him with that won't go blabbing, right?" Roxy smiled back.

"You got that right. Now how's Harry? Is he really nice to you? Is he a good kisser?" Athena asked, smirking.

"_Athena!_ You're almost as terrible as Rainer!" Roxy reddened.

"Oh please. _No one_ is as terrible as Rainer when it comes to that sort of thing." Athena laughed.

"But seriously. What's he like?"

_"ATHENA!"_

* * *

"You look pretty happy, Harry. Not that I'm complaining since you had your miserable moments last semester, but why are you so happy now?" Aki asked as the two sat in their dorm room, reading.

Harry was actually smiling and humming as he read a book about dragons.

"Ah, nothing in particular, Aki. I've just been in a good mood lately..." Harry said, shrugging.

"Why?" Aki asked suspiciously.

"So a bloke can't just be happy?" Harry asked.

"A... "bloke" is never that happy for no reason, dude. Something's up with you. Did you finally meet a girl you like or something?" Aki asked.

"Nope." Harry responded coolly.

"Don't lie dude. Don't make me shock you. Because you _know _that I will shock you." Aki held up his hand, which crackled with electricity lightly. "Coming from Electra, wandless electric spells do come easier to me after all even if I cannot cast general magic spells like you can..."

"I'd like to see you try and catch me, Aki..." Harry chortled.

"Okay then. I will." Aki shrugged and lunged across the room suddenly, narrowly missing Harry who did a backflip and ended up on Aki's bed.

"What the bloody hell is wrong with you, Aki?!" Harry's hair fell in front of his face and he flicked it out, looking at his roommate exasperatedly

"You've got something on your mind and I want to know what it is after all. Come on dude, you can tell me. I won't tell any of the others. I swear it." Aki held a hand to his chest, above his heart.

"Well, I'm better you than I am with the others I suppose. Lucas is too absorbed in his books and Darian... yeah, I'm not telling him for now. I have a girlfriend." Harry said.

"So? That's a good thing! Why do you need to hide that?" Aki wondered.

"Roxy and I only just got together and we're just trying to figure out things right now..." Harry shrugged.

"You and Roxy? I knew it!" Aki beamed. "I knew it! Athena and I were wondering when you'd see it!"

"Athena and... are you two dating too?" Harry looked surprised.

"We only started a little before the break started. We're keeping it hush-hush too for now so I completely understand you. Maybe we could go double date sometime..." Aki said.

"Maybe... It sounds okay, I suppose." Harry nodded.

"Now can I please get back to my bed and to my book? I was on a pretty interesting chapter about the potential capabilities of dragon magic..." Harry got up.

"Oh yeah, sure. Sorry about trying to tackle you there, Harry. I guess I just got a little carried away..." Aki looked sheepish as he went back to his own bed.

"Apology accepted. I'll ask Roxy about a double date next Saturday and see what she thinks, huh?" Harry said.

"And I'll do the same for Athena. I'm sure they'll love it..." Aki smiled as he dug around for his own book, which had been lost to the sheets in their scuffle.


End file.
